Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon nominated by President Trump to be the secretary of housing and urban development, bought a 6,400-square-foot house in Vienna last month, according to property records. The five-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bathroom traditional-style home sits on a 1.5-acre plot a few miles from the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts and the Meadowlark Botanical Gardens.
The sale, which was recorded January 25, is listed to Carson and his wife, Candy, according to Fairfax County property records. The Carsons also own property in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, where last year they purchased a $4.4 million mansion on a gated golf-course development. (The Carsons are also selling a house in West Palm Beach for $1.2 million, and own a sprawling estate in Baltimore County.)
The 65-year-old Carson, who does not have experience in housing policy, was the head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore from 1984 to 2013. He entered politics after retiring, largely energized by his critique of the Affordable Care Act. He sought the Republican Party’s presidential nomination in 2016, with his best showing coming from his fourth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses before dropping out March 4 and endorsing Trump.
Carson’s nomination to the HUD job was approved by the Senate Banking Committee on January 24, a day before he bought the Vienna house, although it may not be until early March until the full Senate votes on him.