Grammy Award-winning R&B artist R. Kelly is facing a $2.9-million foreclosure suit on his Olympia Fields mansion, a vivid reminder of the steep decline in residential property values.
The singer-songwriter, whose full name is Robert S. Kelly, has failed to make monthly mortgage payments since June 2010 on the property on Maros Lane, according to a complaint filed by J. P. Morgan Chase Bank N.A. last month in Cook County Circuit Court.
The 11,140-square-foot home was constructed by Kelly 11 years ago.
According to a person familiar with his affairs, the singer stopped making payments on the mortgage in an attempt to force the bank to negotiate a modification of the loan.
The appraised value of the home fell 26%, to $3.8 million, in 2010, compared to $5.2 million in 2009, according to an Assessor estimate. The home is now worth less than the debt, the source said.
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