October 15, 2025
The 21,000-square-foot property was purchased for lower than half of the unique asking value of $3.5 million.
The mansion that convicted singer R. Kelly owned for over 10 years was lately bought for $1.6 million.
In keeping with The New York Put up, the mansion that the R&B recording artist dubbed the “Chocolate Manufacturing unit,” additionally the title of certainly one of his albums, was purchased for lower than half of the unique asking value of $3.5 million. The 21,000-square-foot property additionally housed a studio the place he recorded many songs.
The property now not belonged to R. Kelly, because it was bought in 2013 by the late Rudolph Isley of the Isley Brothers and his spouse, Elaine, for $587,500. When the mansion was purchased, reportedly, it was in disarray with floodwater within the basement, mould on the partitions, and decay within the rafters. The couple invested a big amount of cash within the mansion to revive it. The property was positioned again in the marketplace after Rudolph’s loss of life two years in the past.
The realtor who bought the property, Alex Wolking of Keller Williams ONEChicago, supplied perception into the sale to the media outlet, stating that property taxes influenced the acquisition.
“The largest problem to promoting the property we had had been the property taxes,” Wolking said.
“The unique tax invoice was over $250,000 after I first listed the property. The taxes had been based mostly on an assessed worth of practically $4.7 million. We appealed … and gained, which diminished the assessed worth to $2.6 million.”
Though the Isleys had been the house owners when the home was listed, he admitted that linking R. Kelly, as the previous proprietor, to it helped deliver consideration to the property, despite the fact that the asking value wasn’t met.
“The R. Kelly media consideration was really what helped promote it, opposite to what many might imagine,” he mentioned.
“The Isley Brothers connection helped draw a whole lot of advertising and marketing consideration, too. … It’s one of the crucial storied and iconic houses in Chicagoland, and houses with this type of superstar lineage simply don’t exist within the Midwest.”
The “I Imagine I Can Fly” songwriter is presently serving a 30-year sentence on racketeering and intercourse trafficking expenses at the Federal Correctional Institute facility in Butner, North Carolina.
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