Even the opportunity to live in a home created by a legendary NBA player doesn’t seem to be enough to convince buyers to fork up $14.8 million for Michael Jordan’s Illinois estate.
The 7-acre Highland Park estate has apparently been up for sale for the past nine years, according to the New York Post.
He took full ownership of the house in January 2007, one year after his divorce from Juanita Vanoy, and listed it for $29 million in 2012
In 1991, the year he won the first of his six NBA championships while playing for the Chicago Bulls, he and Vanoy initially paid $2 million for the home.
Jordan initially marketed the home for $21 million, reduced it to $14.8 million in 2015, and then listed it once more for $16 million.
He has since maintained that price despite finding no takers, even after ESPN’s 2017 documentary The Last Dance about him was published.
Jordan has been paying substantial amounts of property taxes. The annual payment is over US$130,000, and according to Zillow, he has paid over US$2.5 million in property taxes since he listed the house for sale in 2012.
It surely doesn’t help that the nine-bedroom, 16-bathroom house has been painstakingly customized to meet Jordan’s specific needs, right down to the wrought iron gate with his jersey number 23 welded to the front and the massive fitness center and indoor basketball court.
The NBA icon constructed the entire home from scratch over the course of four years, finishing it in 1995. In 2009, the 3 stories and 56,000 square feet of the home received yet another extensive refurbishment.
The property’s features include five fireplaces, a big skylight, a gourmet chef’s kitchen, a theater, a cigar room, a poker room, a wine cellar, and an outdoor tennis court.
The property also has a guesthouse with three bedrooms and three separate multi-car garages. Jordan reportedly planted 40-foot evergreens at the Heller Nature Center across the street to further obstruct views of his residence, as if the Bulls-branded gate wasn’t already private enough. But as long as it’s still available, there’s no need to worry about the house decaying. The mansion is still reportedly being kept up by the staff who work there.