Elvis Presley's Granddaughter Is Now the Sole Owner of Graceland
It's official: Graceland has a new owner. Nearly seven months after Lisa Marie Presley's sudden passing, a Los Angeles judge ruled her eldest daughter, actress Riley Keough, is officially the sole heir to the iconic Memphis property. As the former home of Elvis Presley, the residence has been owned by the King of Rock 'n' Roll's family since he purchased it in the spring of 1957. (According to Graceland's website, a then 22-year-old Presley purchased the 13-acre grounds for a little more than $100,000. Wow!) Though keeping Graceland in the Presley family seems like a no-brainer, the estate plan was met with contention.
You see, when Presley died in 1977, the musician listed three beneficiaries to his estate: his grandmother, Minnie Mae Presley; his father, Vernon Presley; and his only child, Lisa Marie. Since Presley's grandmother and father passed away decades ago, Lisa Marie had long been Graceland's sole owner.
Now, here's where it gets a little dramatic. In 2016, Lisa Marie made an amendment to her will listing Keough as the sole trustee to her estate and naming Keough, her two half-sisters, and her brother, Benjamin Keough, who sadly died by suicide in 2020, as beneficiaries. Priscilla had previously been named in it as a cotrustee.
When Lisa Marie passed away earlier this year, her mom (and Elvis' former wife) Priscilla filed court documents questioning the authenticity and validity of her daughter's updated will. "I loved Elvis very much as he loved me. Lisa is a result of our love," Priscilla said in an official statement. "For anyone to think anything differently would be a travesty of the family legacy and would be disrespectful of what Elvis left behind in his life."
Over the past few months, the dispute was handled privately, and Keough was named the sole heir. But while Keough is the owner of Graceland, don't expect her to move in anytime soon. Graceland was reimagined as a museum in 1982, and it now welcomes more than 500,000 visitors each year. Regardless of who owns Graceland, one thing's for sure: The King's legacy and real estate portfolio live on.
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