At its simplest level, the economic crisis can be traced to the buying and selling of homes. And the major players in the drama—whether they’re blamed for the mess or charged with cleaning it up—all return at the end of the day to their own houses.

Some ride high despite the carnage. In June, former Fannie Mae head Frank Raines spent $4.9 million on a three-bedroom, seven-bath condo in the West End’s Ritz-Carlton Residences. Less than a mile away is Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s $1.1-million condo along the Georgetown waterfront.

Here’s a look at the houses of the bailout newsmakers.

Henry Paulson

Secretary of the Treasury

Massachusetts Avenue Heights, DC (photo above)

Assessed value: $3.9 million

Market value: $4.5 million

Ben Bernanke

Chair of the Federal Reserve

Capitol Hill

Assessed value: $885,000

Market value: $1.13 million

Alan Greenspan

Former chair of the Federal Reserve

Kent, DC

Assessed value: $1.7 million

Market value: $1.95 million

Chris Cox

Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission

Alexandria

Assessed value: $1.7 million

Market value: $1.95 million

Daniel Mudd Former

President of Fannie Mae

Cleveland Park, DC

Assessed value: $6.2 million

Market value: $8.5 million

Jamie Gorelick

Former Fannie Mae vice chair, Clinton-administration deputy attorney general

Chevy Chase

Assessed value: $1.3 million

Market value: $2.5 million

Estimates of market value provided by a local real-estate agent.

This article first appeared in the December 2008 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.