At the height of his early solo success, Michael Jackson shocked many by choosing not a lavish mansion, but a modest three-bedroom, three-bath condo in Encino, California as his first home. In 1981, at just 23 years old and fresh off the record-breaking success of Off the Wall, Jackson purchased the condo for $210,000—a humble choice for a pop star on the rise.

Encouraged by his attorney and confidant John Branca, who believed it was time Michael had his own space and independence, Jackson still struggled with the idea of living alone. Despite buying the property, he initially refused to move out of the family home on Hayvenhurst Avenue, claiming he would “die of loneliness.” Fame had isolated him; unlike most young adults, he couldn’t go out for casual dinners or make spontaneous plans without bodyguards. His life was far from ordinary.

Jackson partly bought the condo thinking of his mother, Katherine. If she ever decided to leave her husband, Joseph, he wanted her to have a place to go. Michael paid $175,000 in cash, with Katherine contributing the remaining $35,000. As a sign of affection, he granted her equity in the condo as her separate property—meaning she wouldn’t have to share it with Joseph in the event of a split.

“If you can’t stand him for another second, you can move here,” Jackson reportedly told his mother, referring to Joseph. “It will be great. We can live here together.” But in the end, neither Michael nor Katherine made the move. The emotional ties to Hayvenhurst and the complications of fame kept Michael from fully embracing his new independence.

Still, the condo would play a temporary role in Jackson’s life. In the mid-1980s, when the Hayvenhurst home was undergoing a two-year remodel, Jackson lived in the condo briefly along with some of his siblings. The building, named the Ellenbrook, was constructed in 1973 and housed 81 units. It offered privacy, seclusion, and security, tucked away from the chaos of central Los Angeles.

During this time, Jackson welcomed Rolling Stone journalist Gerri Hirshey into the apartment. The visit resulted in a now-famous 1983 article. “Not what you expected, huh?” Jackson said of the modest space. Indeed, it was an unexpected residence for a global superstar, especially one preparing to change the music industry forever with Thriller. But that was precisely the appeal—the quiet, the anonymity, the ability to live without the constant gaze of the press and public.

While living there, Jackson found moments of comfort and joy. A video from that period shows him dancing with child actor Emmanuel Lewis in the living room—one of the few glimpses into Jackson’s attempts to create normalcy in an otherwise abnormal life.

Although Jackson only lived there briefly, the apartment remained part of his life. Over the years, it became something of a safe haven for his brothers during times of personal hardship. One Jackson or another always seemed to be staying there. Even after Michael’s death in 2009, the property remained in the family and was managed by the Jackson estate.

Today, the Encino condo serves as a small but revealing chapter in Michael Jackson’s extraordinary life—a symbol of his yearning for simplicity, his loyalty to family, and the quiet spaces he carved out behind the curtain of fame. Hidden from the glitz and spectacle, it remains a rare window into the private world of a public icon.