Michael Jordan's Chicago estate fails to sell at auction

The Chicago-area mansion belonging to American basketball star and NBA franchise owner Michael Jordan did not attract a winning bid at an auction on Monday, a spokeswoman said.

The 56,000-square-foot (5,200 square-meter) home on more than seven acres (3 hectares) in the northern Chicago suburb of Highland Park has a regulation-size basketball court, a putting green, tennis court, nine bedrooms and 15 full and four half bathrooms.

The estate was scheduled to be auctioned on Monday night live for in-person bidding and by phone, said Lauren Hovey, a spokeswoman for the auctioneer, Concierge Auctions.

But by early evening, a spokeswoman for Jordan announced that the house had failed to sell.

"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," said spokeswoman Estee Portnoy. "The market conditions were just not right to drive a fair value."

The Jordan home, known as Legend Point, was previously offered for $29 million, according to New York-based Concierge. It includes a "gentlemen's retreat" with a billiard parlor, library, full wet bar, and the original doors from the ChicagoPlayboyMansion.

The basketball great will decide what comes next for the house after the holidays, Portnoy said.

"I have so many amazing, happy memories of my life in the house over the years," Jordan said in a Concierge statement. "It's where my kids grew up. It's where I lived during my championship years.

Jordan said that while he still had business interests in Chicago, where he was a star with the Chicago Bulls basketball team, he didn't need such a large house there now that his children are grown.

Jordan has three adult children from his 17-year marriage to Juanita Venoy, which ended in divorce in 2006.

Jordan and his new wife, Yvette Prieto, are expecting their first child, according to media reports. No due date was reported. Jordan, 50, and Prieto were married in April in Florida.

The Hall of Fame player won six National Basketball Association championships with the Chicago Bulls. He won the NBA Most Valuable Player award five times and was named an all-star 14 times.

His on-court success and commercial endorsements have made him one of the most recognizable and prosperous athletes in the United States. He is primary owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. 

Photograph: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images