The suburban Chicago estate once known as R. Kelly’s “Chocolate Factory” has officially changed hands—closing at just $1.6 million, a fraction of its former asking price.
According to The New York Post, the 21,000-square-foot Olympia Fields property, where Kelly recorded music and was later accused of controlling women and girls under what insiders described as “Rob’s rules,” became notorious long before it ever landed on the real estate market.
Former assistant Anthony Navarro, who testified in court during Kelly’s federal trial, described the mansion as a world of strict control where young women were confined to certain rooms and forbidden from wandering freely. Surveillance footage even showed teenagers hopping fences in an apparent attempt to escape.
By the time the home fell into foreclosure in 2013, its physical state mirrored its tainted history. Flood damage had ravaged the basement, mold had spread across the walls, and rot had crept into the structure.
The late Rudolph Isley of the Isley Brothers and his wife, Elaine, purchased it out of foreclosure for $587,500, committing years to restoring its sprawling interiors. The property included eccentric features such as a jungle-themed indoor pool and a bedroom styled like a Chicago Bulls gym.
Following Isley’s death in 2023, Elaine relisted the mansion at $3.5 million. Despite its celebrity lineage and renovations, the house ultimately sold for less than half that price.
According to Alex Wolking of Keller Williams ONEChicago, who represented the listing, high property taxes were one of the steepest hurdles. At one point, the assessed value pegged the annual tax bill at more than $250,000. Even after a successful appeal lowered the valuation, taxes remained in the six-figure range.
Still, Wolking noted that the home’s notoriety may have been its own form of marketing. “The R. Kelly media attention was actually what helped sell it,” he told The Post. “The Isley Brothers connection helped draw a lot of attention, too. Homes with this kind of celebrity lineage just don’t exist in the Midwest.”