TASTEFUL FRIENDS: Elton John has listed his Atlanta Condo in Buckhead for almost $5 million.

Why the hell does he live in Atlanta?

R1, it was his U.S. base when he was touring in the U.S. That chapter is closed now.

Bland, boring , dull. No color, no life. Looks like an expensive hotel.

[quote] Why the hell does he live in Atlanta?

Enty discussed this weeks ago

. ENTERTAINMENT LAWYER 09/07 **14**

The Agreement: This permanent A list singer once resided in a place that seemed very odd. He chose to live in that particular city because he could live in a type of anonymity he couldn't get elsewhere. He would be able to do things he wouldn't be able to do elsewhere.

An A list actor is the reason our singer moved there. The actor was involved and is still involved in various organizations that help young teens who are struggling in life and at home. The singer and the actor took a remarkable interest in the boys of those groups. They particularly liked young teens from single family homes or homes where they were cared for by distant relatives. They never volunteered to help any young female teens. It is amazing how many pool parties were held for these teens and how after one of these pool parties, friends of the actor and singer would come over and watch the videos not only from the pool, but also from the guest house where the boys would change.

At some point, the singer got confronted by a very large, very angry relative with a gun and the singer decided to move to a different city.

Elton John/“Buckhead” Atlanta, Georgia/Tyler Perry

Intriguing, R4. Tell me more.

He has never "lived" in Atlanta full time r1, its always been a part time residence. But he wanted an American base that wasn't in LA or NY, particularly as he was trying to stay sober. And back in the 90s when he bought that property he was dating a guy from Atlanta. Through the 90s and early oughta he spent a decent amount of time in Atlanta. Less so recently.

What is the story with Tyler Perry? Dark rumors are always swirling around him.

That BI makes no sense. Even in the OP it says he has owned the condo for 32 years. How/why would Elton move to Atlanta for Tyler Perry, who hasn't even been a thing that long, let alone an "A list actor"? More Enty bullshit.

R8- I live near , or did until recently, and he has lived here for many years.

I agree r8. T Perry is huge in ATL. There is no way he's having teenage pool parties and it only getting out now that Elton is selling a condo. ATL is a small town at it's core, so someone like Perry hosting a bunch of teenage boys would be the talk of the town. Especially if it happened years ago.

If that was Elton's MO, why wouldn't he stay in one of Perry's 100 bedrooms in his current or former mansion? Why buy?

Living in Atlanta was fabulous until it wasn't any longer.

Sad last days..

Atlanta is a fake ass city with no culture.

Yes very hotel like - which is probably what he uses it for.

[QUOTE] Atlanta is a fake ass city with no culture.

How dare you? We have a PUPPETRY MUSEUM!!!

A commenter on that website posted this.

[quote]Dirt cheap for a 13K+ square foot condo with 9 parking places. We pay $5K month for a Four Season’s condo with a quarter of that size with two (tight) parking spaces. Blows my mind this condo is listed for only $5M ($384 a square foot) when new condo’s without nearly as nice design and furnishings are in the $2,000 a square foot range in a lot of places.

The parking space allocation is a lot for any home. I assume it's "cheap" because in the ATL area most people want sprawling estates for their millions, not condos. For those interested in the condo sphere, the newer builders offer the modern amenities that will impress buyers and their guests. I'm talking grand pools, nice gyms (with great lighting), recreation areas, little dog park, on demand maid services, a kids play area, screening room, etc.

The building is dated and we just know it probably has a dingy old gym on top of an $8 a month HOA. Yeah, I'd consider it but if I'm in ATL, I'd rather build my own home for $5 million rather then shuffle into an old 1980s era condo. But if you want a condo, this one is really really pretty, despite it's age.

Stunning place.

[quote]because in the ATL area most people want sprawling estates for their millions, not condos

That's what I was thinking. This isn't New York, don't most rich people in Atlanta want suburban style mansions and not a urban condo. I would think there would be a somewhat limited buyers pool.

It probably has that many parking spaces because his unit is made up of several units that were combined, so he would have been buying those allocated spaces when he bought those units.

His apartment consists of one full floor and 1/2 of the floor above it. Yes, it was formerly multiple apartments. That's why it comes with so many spaces for parking.

He's undoubtedly selling this unit at a big loss to get a fast sale. He put $4 million into a guest house many years ago in the Virginia Highland neighborhood of Atlanta. It was originally a craftsman bungalow just like most of the houses in VH. When he put it up for sale he sold it for millions less than he had in it in upgrades. Whoever bought that house got a fabulous deal.

This is what you can do when you are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Losing a few million on a house sale is no big deal.

Obviously they haven't spent a lot of time there recently - it screams high-end early 2000s decor.

As others stated, he wanted a US base outside of temptations of LA or NY - plus he wanted to be where new producers and music was happening - and Atlanta was the 'new music' city for a long time that has softened a bit since.

His initial and primary reason for setting up home in Atlanta was because he was madly in love with an Atlanta guy. His boyfriend owned a Baskin Robbins franchise. Alas, their relationship didn't last, but he had already become enamored of Atlanta and the life it could provide him and he ended up buying the place in Buckhead. He could do his own grocery shopping and no one would bother him at all. He said he had found nowhere else that could give him that kind of freedom.

Any other 'stories' about why he moved to Atlanta are 100% bogus.

It looks like a hotel because that's essentially what it's been for the last thirty years..

He bought this when condos were not popular in Atlanta and tended to be cheap compared to most places and to stagnate in value. Condos took off in the early 2000s and probably benefited from the the boom market of the last few years. Beyond the additions, it probably hasn't gotten a huge investment over the years. He probably will make money if he can find a buyer. The building is in "old Buckhead" (classier than "new Buckhead" which has more condo buildings), but it probably isn't as popular a building as the newer ones in "new Buckhead" or Midtown. There is less "real money" in Atlanta than appearances would suggest. If it doesn't attract a hip-hop star, then perhaps it might get a studio head who wants a local residence while overseeing the moistly low budget films and cable fare that are produced there--the price would be cheap in relation to NYC or NYC but a lot of wasted space, so perhaps it would eventually get subdivided.

Atlanta's music scene is second string hip-hop. It's never been a music capital. Atlanta gays tend to be divided between those who know its a joke and those who are utterly defensive when people infer that it's a cultural wasteland.

r22 new music and fresh talent is important, but Elton is no Madonna chasing new sounds. He's a piano man singing piano tunes. I fail to see what an ATL sound does for Elton John. Since he's a solid A-list artist, he can pull a Madonna or Justin Bieber and have his label fly in someone from anywhere in the world to help him work on his work. He doesn't need to go to the talent.

The post rehab and dating a guy in ATL makes much more sense then any claims of moving to ATL for the music, lol.

r25 gurl please, any number of black elite in entertainment, sports or business will buy it, upgrade it and use it as second home. Its as good as sold.

Its also not farfetched to believe Elton had a few nubile young black men over for parties back in the late 90s when ATL was totally off the radar and there was no social media

Oprah bought a million dollar plus condo for Coretta Scott King in EJ's building near the end of CSK's life. Why Oprah had to buy it I can't fathom as it has always been known in Atlanta that the Kings are all quite wealthy. And at one time Janet Jackson lived there with that little midget Jermaine Dupri when she was laid up with him.

"Low budget films"??!! Blue Beetle was $100 million, The Suicide Squad was $185.

^ and endless Marvel at Trilith.

Yes, thank you r30 -I forgot Guardians 3 was $250 million.

Oh dear, pool parties???? In Atlanta?????? SIGN ME UP!!!

Bryan Singer wasn’t into black boys.

R29: You're the one who always mentions these schlocky but big money franchise films, but never the low budget schlock that keeps the doors open. Once another state comes up with a better incentive package, all of that will leave anyway. Just ask North Carolina.

He'll make a profit but not a big one---given the current property market, he probably saw that it was a good time to sell after many years of relative stagnation. The apartment probably would bring more money if it was in the ugly "new" part of Buckhead, which is filled with grotesque mini-mansions. This area has the Atlanta equivalent of quiet good taste. The hip-hop types prefer the gated communities out near the airport, which have big houses. The Kings like many Atlantans who look rich are probably heavily in debt.

Looks like a Singapore airport lounge.

Elton is looking more and more like a female alien.

Atlanta has some incredible recording facilities. You'd be shocked if you knew who comes to Atlanta regularly to record. Madonna spent a good bit of time in Atlanta many years recording and was so taken with the city she said she wanted a house there. Most of the major music stars have recorded in Atlanta at one time or another.

r34, are you in the film industry? I've worked on more mid level films in Atlanta as a non local in the last 5 years, and my friends who live there routinely work on big budget stuff (Blue Beetle, Haunted Mansion, the New Exorcist trilogy, Guardians 3). In L.A., all we have are some tv shows, small indies and reshoots for big budget projects. So your claim about low budget films "keeping the door open" in Atlanta is disingenuous.

Right, I think at this point the infrastructure, professional and physical, is very established there and it has moved beyond the Michigan, Louisiana, North Carolinas of the world.

Geez, I hope r4's blind item is just hot air.

However, since there is no real reason why he would have a place in Atlanta, it makes it seem like there might be some truth in the matter.

I hope not.

[QUOTE]The Kings like many Atlantans who look rich are probably heavily in debt.

You don't say.

R37: Atlantans are so easily flattered. Obviously, Madonna never bought a house there even as a glam storage locker like Sir Elton....and it was many years ago.

Don't you disrespect Atlanta.

They have a Coca-Cola museum.

I must admit, their aquarium is pretty fire. The snorkel experience with the whale sharks and rays is pretty cool.

R42, we send our love (and pity) to you in Boise.

The other day I saw an interview with an actor who left LA for Atlanta. She said she left because another actor friend, who after 10 years in LA, left for Atlanta and told her he'd booked more work in the 1 year he'd been in Atlanta than he had in 10 years in LA. She said "I'LL SEE YOU THERE!".

Unless you're lucky enough to be one of the minuscule number of those who make it to major stardom, and are a working actor as the vast majority of them are, Hollywood is likely to not be your path to success as an actor.

And thank God for all those working actors. Without them we'd have no movie or TV industry.

Elton has just sold his condo at millions over the asking price. Sold for $7.225 million.

I don't hate it and like much of it. I generally like "hotel vibes" but moodier, darker accented hotels. The teak area look like an office, not a hotel.

I wouldn't assume that was his personal decor. When rich people sell their houses they often hire someone to make it neutral and 'hotel like'.

R42: I did my time in Atlanta. Then I moved to an actual city and it ain't in Idaho.

I would escape Atlanta, too.

Oh poor R50 & R51, two queens who were probably rejected by everyone in Atlanta due to their offensive personalities.

[quote] Bland, boring , dull. No color, no life.

It’s Elton.

I've seen images of the apartment when EJ was living there. Trust me, those photos were taken after he had moved out and it was staged for sale.

Exactly - a lot of people aren't getting that. The houses are made neutral for sale because quirky tastes or colors can put potential buyers off (even though it shouldn't) - buyers want a bland template to imagine moving into and making their own. And secondly, for privacy especially if famous. So all personal effects and photos are going to be taken out.

This video is from years back when he gave a tour of the place to Matt Lauer.

^ That looks a lot more like someone's actual home. Obviously all those pictures and sculptures have been taken out and the place cleaned up for sale.

R52: Atlanta queens are so defensive! You live in a cultural wasteland full of incurious people. It's as predictable as a Tyler Perry film. R46 can't come up with a link for such a concrete anecdote--either lying or lazy, either way not a good advert for Atlanta.

Do be quiet R58. If there's anyone who is defensive it's you queer snits who failed in Atlanta and now spend so much of your time vocalizing your hatred of the city that didn't want you. We're just glad to see the back of you.

Atlanta has got to be one of the ugliest cities in the US.

R52 is just bitchy and snippy because they/them has no money and no prospects to live elsewhere. Pity.

R60 the utter ignorance of your statement is laughable. I don't even know you (thank God) but I can guarantee you that you would be very lucky to be in my financial position.

Now do be quiet and go play with your toys.