How Elvis Presley’s Memphis-Based Graceland Continues to Make Money For His Heirs

In 1957, a 22-year-old Elvis Presley bought Graceland, a Colonial Revival–style mansion on 13.8 acres in Memphis, Tenn., for $102,500 and moved in with his parents, Gladys and Vernon. He lived there for 20 years until his death in 1977. It was Priscilla Presley’s idea to turn the estate into a tourist attraction in 1982 to preserve his legacy and generate revenue.

Today, Riley Keough is the sole trustee for her and half-sisters Harper and Finley’s 15 percent ownership in its business entities, though they own 100 percent of their grandfather’s mansion, grounds, costumes, awards, furniture and cars.

Graceland continues to make money for the Presley heirs — it’s the second most visited home in America after the White House and brings in a reported $10 million annually, according to Hello! Magazine.

In August, it opened two new exhibits: Colonel Parker’s World of Show Business, which features artifacts that belonged to Elvis’ legendary and controversial manager, Colonel Tom Parker, plus the dramatic Graceland in Red 1974, which reveals what Elvis’ living room looked like in the final years of his life after he scrapped his mother’s conservative blue-and-white aesthetic for red satins and velvet.