If You’re President, You Can Live in House Fit for a King

No wonder Bill Clinton and Bob Dole are campaigning so hard to be president of the United States. If they win, they get to live in a $63.9-million house.

That’s what the White House would cost today if the mansion at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C., were up for sale, according to a survey by Coldwell Banker Residential Affiliates. of Mission Viejo. The White House cost just $232,372 to build 204 years ago.

“The house is the most well-built in the country, if not the world,” said Mike Melton, administrative officer of the White House Historical Society.

Coldwell Banker polled a group of its top agents nationwide to come up with a suggested asking price, assuming the home was for sale.

Peter G. Miller, a national real estate expert and author of “The Mortgage Hunter” said that with a conventional 30-year, fixed-rate loan at 8% interest and a 10% down payment, the new occupants would need an annual income of $25.7 million to qualify. Miller estimates the monthly house payments would run $600,000.

And no wonder, features include 32 bathrooms and 132 rooms. The White House also has 29 fireplaces and three elevators, a dental office, bowling lane, tennis court, movie theater and jogging track. The 42,840-square-foot (excluding basement) landmark is perched on 18 acres of prime downtown property.

But if you’re looking to for a way into the White House without going through a political campaign, here’s another option--the Western White House, an authentic copy of its East Coast namesake, complete with its own Oval Office and Rose Garden. Coldwell’s listing price: $8.5 million.

In the Northern California city of Hillsborough, the 22-room Western White House was built in 1878 and was formerly owned by George Hearst, eldest son of William Randolph Hearst. In 1930, George Hearst commissioned well-known architect Julia Morgan, then working on Hearst Castle, to design a home for presidents to stay in when visiting the West Coast.