Michael Jordan’s Home Fails at Auction
By Lucas on Jan 17, 2014
Via Zillow.com
By Penny Munoz
After all that hype about the auction for his custom built $29 million home in Chicago, Michael Jordan fell short! How short? According to Forbes, the home was listed on ConciergeAuctions.com with a minimum sale price of $13 million.
Via Zillow.com
The 56,000 square foot, nine-bedroom, 19-bath, one-of-a-kind mansion is back on the market with the new price of $16 million after the failed auction. Located in Highland Park, Illinois, the house was first put on the market in 2012.
Perhaps it’s a personal bias, after all, this was his primary place of residence for over 19 years, but even brokers are wondering why the home is listed so high. "I'm not sure of the logic of raising the price," said one broker. "If it didn't sell at $13 million, how might it sell at $16 million?"
Despite luxurious features like the “island escape” infinity pool, personal regulation size NBA-quality basketball court and a 150-evergreen forested fence, which all sits atop 7.39 acres of private landscape, brokers remain pessimistic about this dream home selling that high because of the location.
Via Zillow.com
Homes nearby generally range from $1-5 million with the most expensive home sold in Chicago in the past five years being just over $12 million. Also mentioned in speculative discussion was the fact that these features are not really attractive to Chicago’s specific buying market. Impressive as many of the bacheloresque features of the home may be, in terms of creativity, potential buyers are not ready to spend $20,000 over the market value for a 14-car garage, billiard parlor, wet bar, or even the “gentleman’s retreat”— which is complete with the original Playboy Mansion doors.
Market analysts suggest that this may have a lot to do with the type of buyers this community seems to attract: "We're a conservative, Midwest community so people aren't super-impressed with celebrity ownership," said Jennifer Ames, a leading broker in Chicago with Coldwell Banker. "And most people don't need a basketball court in their house."
Via Zillow.com
If it’s the premium Jordan is holding out for, Mauricio Umansky, founder of The Agency, a Los Angeles firm that is accustomed to dealing with celebrity homes says “I’ve had people paying perceived premiums–but not a lot more,” he says. “If the house is worth $10 million, you might get $10.5 million, but you won’t get $20 million.”
No official comment has been published from Jordan himself, but spokesperson Estee Portnoy told media that “We are disappointed that the high bid in today’s auction of Michael Jordan’s residence in Highland Park did not meet the reserve price. We will be evaluating options for the property in the new year.”
Looks like you still have the opportunity to own the most impressive collection of Jumpman paraphernalia!
