Pressing Reset on the Sale of Kurt Cobain’s Childhood Home in Washington

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Before Kurt Cobain—lead vocalist for the grunge-rock band Nirvana—hit his stride in Seattle in the early ’90s, he was just a boy growing up in Aberdeen, WA.

But when the childhood home of the late musician hit the market in 2015, with a $500,000 listing price, which later dropped to $329,000, nobody bit on the piece of rock history. Cobain died in 1994 at the age of 27.

Fans were bummed out and left to wonder what would become of the four-bedroom, one-bath home on a residential street.

Now with a new listing agent and set of photos—as well as a lower price—it may finally sell. Listed for $225,000 with Heather Karl Shook of Shook Home Group/Keller Williams Realty, the revived listing includes a virtual tour.

“We hung up some of his artwork and his photos, too,” she says. The photos were positioned in the actual rooms in which they were taken, including the dining room, where a photo shows a young Cobain blowing out his birthday candles in that very room, and Cobain’s bedroom, where his personal art hangs.

Cobain’s sister is the homeowner and his “uncle lives nearby so he helps take care of it, stopping by almost every day,” says Shook.

Front exterior

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Living room

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Working closely with Cobain’s family, Shook learned that “Kurt wanted it to be a music school or music museum,” she says. “That’s what the family’s hoping (someone will) do with it.

“That was the happiest time of his life, in that house,” says Shook. “The family wants something positive to happen with it. They’re not looking to make a ton of money on it.”

Kitchen

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Attic

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Even so, Shook advised the family to price it appropriately. The $225,000 price is still higher than Aberdeen’s $128,000 median listing price, but “we have a more realistic value on it now,” she says.

The price “to own a piece of rock history is crazy, in my opinion,” she adds. “How do you place the value on the person who lived there?”

By reaching out to investors and those in the music industry in Seattle, Shook has been trying to attract the right buyer.

Another idea that Nirvana fans might enjoy: “Maybe clean it up just a little bit and turn it into an Airbnb,” says Shook.

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