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.
