Priscilla Presley’s Former Hollywood Hills Home Hits The Market

There are very few people who get to say they lived at Graceland, Elvis Presley’s former home turned tourist attraction. But his former wife, Priscilla Presley, was one of those lucky few. Elvis bought the 1939-built classical revival-style mansion in 1957 for $102,500. It originally measured about 10,200 sq ft but was later expanded it to 17,500 sq ft and had a kidney-shaped swimming pool added into the grounds. Today, it’s America’s most-visited residence (bar the White House), attracting fans from across the globe. 

Long before her days in Graceland, Priscilla was just 14 when she met the 24-year-old Elvis Presley in West Germany. He had been drafted into the US Army in 1958. She was living there with her mother and stepfather, an Air Force captain based out there. As Sofia Coppola’s oh-so-aesthetic 2023 biopic of the starlet details, the pair formed a relationship, despite the significant age gap, and maintained a long-distance love affair until 1962 when she moved to Graceland to live with Elvis and his parents, then aged 18. Priscilla and Elvis were married at the Aladdin Resort in Las Vegas on 1 May 1967, followed by a reception at their beloved Memphis estate.

Priscilla and Elvis remained there for nearly 10 years, until the pair separated in 1972 and divorced just a year later. Following the divorce, Priscilla bought an Italian-style villa in Beverly Hills in 1973, where she stayed for more than 45 years. Living in there for most of her life, the now 81-year-old Priscilla sold the home in 2020 for $13m. And now it’s been put back on the market just six years later for $19.9m.

Priscilla the movie © A24

Take A Look Inside Priscilla Presley’s Home

Built in 1951, the almost 9,000 sq ft home was most recently renovated in 1994. When Presley sold the property, it had beamed ceilings, wood-panelled walls, a library and a whiskey room. Whilst the listing doesn’t share much about the interiors today, it does note that there’s over an acre of grounds, including mature trees, expansive lawns, a motor court and a sunken championship tennis court. 

Situated on one of Beverly Hills’ most coveted private, gated streets, the Dallas and Naked Gun actress chose the house in part because her famous ex-husband lived in nearby Holmby Hills. ‘We were very, very close, and I wanted to make sure his house was near to our daughter,’ she told Closer during a house tour in 2018. 

Wikimedia Commons

More images of the home can be seen in a 1975 photoshoot, which reveals paved walkways, tiled fountains, statues, and gardens, as well as a plush red carpet, fringed lampshade, and colourfully tiled fireplace. The property also features a courtyard with a fireplace inscribed with the Italian phrase ‘Villa Nostra’. ‘When I had more family here, there was a cosy feeling, and that’s why I put “Villa Nostra”,’ Priscilla said. ‘It means “Our Home” in Italian.’

On the insistence of her then-partner Marco Garibaldi, Priscilla hired an Italian architect to expand the house, adding a second floor with a library, two bedrooms, and a staircase lined with Italian tiles. This added a more ‘European feel’ to the home, while also giving Priscilla more privacy. The five-bedroom, seven-bathroom, 9,000 sq ft villa was, at that, brimming with family memories and mementos. ‘I settled here,’ she said at the thought of downsizing, ‘and I can’t move because I have so many memories.’

George R. Fry, Los Angeles Times, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Where Else Has Priscilla Presley Lived?

Trousdale Estates

Though Graceland was the most famous home shared by Priscilla and Elvis, it was not the only one in their portfolio. The couple bought 1174 Hillcrest Road in the French Regency-style Trousdale Estates, for $400,000 shortly after their 1967 wedding. The pair sold the property soon after they separated. 

Century City

After letting go of her home of more than 45 years, Priscilla downsized to a 3,200 sq ft condo in Century City where she remains to this day. 

On the market for $19,900,000. Find out more at leaporterestates.com