Aretha Franklin’s former Bloomfield Hills residence has entered a new chapter.
The five-bedroom brick estate where the legendary “Queen of Soul” once lived is back on the market in August 2026, now asking $2.95 million after a sweeping renovation that transformed virtually every major element of the property while preserving its connection to one of Detroit’s most celebrated musical figures.
Located at 4585 Kiftsgate Bend within the gated Hills of Lone Pine community, the residence sits on approximately 0.7 acres and combines nearly 7,150 square feet of finished living space with a private outdoor setting overlooking ponds, mature greenery and a newly installed resort-style pool.
The current listing is represented by Brett Schwartz of Max Broock, Birmingham. Current MLS information describes the home as a five-bedroom, five-full-bath and one-half-bath residence built in 1990.
The asking price has also evolved since the property first returned to the market in 2026. It was initially offered at $3.35 million in February, reduced to $3.15 million in May, and is now listed at $2.95 million.
For California Luxury Houses, the property is particularly compelling not simply because of its price or renovation, but because it carries a rare piece of Detroit music history while offering a distinctly contemporary interpretation of suburban luxury.
A House With a Remarkable History
Franklin purchased the Bloomfield Township residence in 1997, making it one of several properties she owned in the Detroit area during her extraordinary career.
At the time, the house offered the kind of privacy that made Bloomfield Hills attractive to prominent residents: a substantial lot, a gated setting, spacious interiors and a landscape that placed generous distance between neighboring homes.
When Franklin died in 2018 at age 76, the property became part of the complicated legal process surrounding her estate.
Her estate was ultimately divided among her four sons after a Michigan court determined that a handwritten 2014 document found between couch cushions was a valid will. The ruling superseded an earlier handwritten will from 2010. Under the 2014 document, Kecalf Franklin was awarded the Bloomfield Hills property.
The home’s value was placed at approximately $1.1 million in the 2023 estate proceedings.
That valuation would soon become part of a very different real-estate story.
Public property records show the residence was listed for $849,000 in November 2024 before selling on December 20 of that year for $1.111 million, following multiple offers.
The buyers subsequently undertook an extensive renovation.
According to reporting from the Detroit Free Press, the project involved stripping much of the interior back to the studs, opening walls, raising ceilings and fundamentally reworking the floor plan. Schwartz described the transformation bluntly: “The entire house was torn out to the studs.”
The renovation helps explain the enormous difference between the 2024 purchase price and today’s $2.95 million asking price.
From Aretha Franklin’s Home to a Modern Luxury Estate
While Franklin’s association with the house is an important part of its identity, the current residence has been extensively reimagined.
The transformation begins at the entrance, where the property’s circular drive and redesigned landscaping lead toward a more polished exterior. The renovation included a new exposed-aggregate driveway, upgraded walkways and patios, refreshed hardscape and landscaping, new garage doors and a completely finished garage with epoxy flooring, drywall and fresh paint.
Inside, the most dramatic architectural change may be the opening of the main living spaces.
The great room now rises to approximately 18 feet, creating a strong vertical focal point immediately upon entering the house. Full-height windows extend the sightline from the front entrance toward the backyard, allowing natural light to travel through the home and visually connecting the interiors with the landscape.
The kitchen has also been opened directly toward the great room.
Schwartz told the Detroit Free Press that the original configuration separated the kitchen and great room with walls and a bar area. The renovation removed the drywall and introduced large steel beams to create a more contemporary open-concept arrangement. “We knew immediately if we moved a couple walls, we had something special,” he said.
That approach is visible throughout the renovation: rather than simply replacing finishes, the project sought to change how the house functions.
The current listing highlights high ceilings, expansive gathering areas and enlarged sightlines, while the lower level has been transformed into an additional entertainment environment.
The finished walk-out level includes a custom bar and secondary kitchen with premium cabinetry and Sub-Zero refrigeration, along with additional bedrooms and entertaining space.
There is also a historical detail hidden beneath the new design. A small stage dating to Franklin’s ownership was removed during the renovation, according to the Detroit Free Press. Some custom pieces associated with the singer reportedly remained after the sale, although items retained by her estate were not included.
A Private Resort Behind the Gates
The setting is one of the property’s strongest assets.
The home occupies nearly three-quarters of an acre within Hills of Lone Pine, an established gated community in Bloomfield Township. The lot has elevated western exposure, giving the backyard sunset views across ponds and landscaped greenery.
The renovation introduced a new resort-style pool in 2025, positioned to take advantage of the western exposure. Raised decks and outdoor entertaining areas further extend the living space beyond the walls of the house.
The result is a backyard designed less as a conventional suburban lawn and more as a private retreat.
Residents of Hills of Lone Pine also have access to community amenities that include a pool, tennis facilities and 24-hour security. The community’s pond system and mature landscape reinforce the secluded character that has long defined the neighborhood.
The setting was already considered desirable when Franklin purchased the property nearly three decades ago. In fact, Architectural Digest’s 2018 coverage described the house as being in the exclusive Hills of Lone Pine area and highlighted its marble-accented entrance, two-story great room, floor-to-ceiling windows and views toward the surrounding ponds and community pool.
Much of that architectural drama remains recognizable today, although the current renovation has shifted the house firmly into a contemporary luxury aesthetic.
Schwartz characterized the renovation as unusually comprehensive, telling the Detroit Free Press: “We went all the way with this renovation. Everything is upper tier.”
That statement is supported by the scale of the work. The renovation encompassed not only decorative finishes but also structural changes, mechanical improvements, landscaping, outdoor spaces and the garage.
What $2.95 Million Buys in Bloomfield Hills
Bloomfield Hills has long been one of metropolitan Detroit’s most prestigious residential communities, known for large lots, established neighborhoods, private clubs and an affluent suburban lifestyle.
For buyers at the upper end of the market, the appeal is less about urban walkability than privacy, land and proximity to the region’s established business and cultural centers.
The property itself is particularly well suited to that lifestyle. It is tucked into a gated community yet remains within the broader Bloomfield Hills area, where residents have access to private clubs, golf, restaurants, retail and major road connections throughout Oakland County.
The location also places the residence within reach of Birmingham, one of metro Detroit’s premier shopping and dining destinations, as well as downtown Detroit’s cultural institutions and entertainment venues.
For a buyer interested in automotive culture, the surrounding region also offers another advantage: metro Detroit remains deeply connected to the American automobile industry and its history, making the area particularly relevant to collectors and executives.
That broader lifestyle context helps distinguish the property from a celebrity-home sale driven solely by nostalgia.
The house now has a substantially different identity from the residence Franklin purchased in the 1990s. The celebrity provenance remains, but the renovation has created a property designed for a buyer who wants modern luxury without giving up the atmosphere of an established estate community.
A New Chapter for a Piece of Detroit Music History
There is an interesting tension at the heart of 4585 Kiftsgate Bend.
The house is undeniably part of Aretha Franklin’s legacy. She purchased it during a period when her career had already established her as one of the defining voices in American music, and she retained the property for years.
But it is no longer a museum piece.
The current owners have taken an estate associated with one of Detroit’s most famous residents and rebuilt it around contemporary expectations: open living spaces, expansive entertaining areas, a resort-style pool, upgraded landscaping, a finished garage and a dramatically reconfigured interior.
The property’s pricing history tells that story almost as clearly as its architecture.
From Franklin’s reported $1.2 million purchase in 1997 to the $849,000 asking price in 2024, the $1.111 million sale that followed, and today’s $2.95 million listing after a comprehensive renovation, the house has passed through several distinct chapters of value and ownership.
California Luxury Houses could not independently verify every detail of the private renovation process beyond the information provided through public listing records and published interviews. But the available MLS records and reporting make one point clear: this was far more than a cosmetic refresh.
For the next owner, the appeal will be twofold.
There is the polished, move-in-ready estate itself, with its expansive interiors, private pool and gated setting. And then there is the intangible value that cannot be recreated through renovation—the fact that the property was once home to Aretha Franklin.
Few luxury homes can offer both.
At $2.95 million, the former Queen of Soul residence is now positioned not merely as a celebrity property, but as a thoroughly reimagined Bloomfield Hills estate with a remarkable piece of American music history embedded in its past.