Motown Mansion For Sale

It's hard to believe that you can still buy million dollar properties in Detroit, but when the deep music history of Motown is involved, it's not that much of stretch.

Motown founder Barry Gordy's longtime Detroit residence (barely) is up for sale.

If you’ve ever wanted to own a piece of Motown history, you’re in luck. Realtor-dot-com says that the Motown Mansion is for sale. The home, which is in Detroit, is named for Gordy. He lived in it from 1967 to 1969, but owned it until 2001.

The 10-thousand, 5-hundred square-foot mansion has only had four owners since it was built in 1917. It features 10 bedrooms, a living room that spans the west side of the house, a sunroom with leaded French doors, a working pub, and a ballroom with a stage. A separate 44-hundred -square-foot poolhouse, built by the home’s second owner in 1929, includes a bowling alley and an Olympic-size pool.

Originally built in 1917 by lumber baron Nels Michelson, the home was built in the then exclusive Boston-Edison neighborhood of Detroit, and because Gordy hired a caretaker to look after it, the home escaped the decaying wrath of the rest of the Motor City.

Current owner, lawyer Cynthia Reaves, put the mansion up for sale once before, back in 2010 with no buyers taking the chance in a bad economy. Her realtor, Keller Williams, says the current economic climate may bring a buyer this time around, particularly if they're looking for music memorabilia.

Reaves restored the home to its Motown heyday glory. In fact, there’s actual evidence of the greats coming through. Martha Reeves signed the scoring table in the bowling alley, and there’s a picture of Marvin Gaye taking the stage at the house. If you have $1-point-295 million bucks lying around, it can be yours.

Now take the rest of the day off and enjoy some classic Motown tunes!