In Texas, the Mansions Dream Bigger Too -- Just Ask This White House Lookalike
There’s a certain kind of a mansion that’s popular in Texas: They’re ornately detailed, extravagantly appointed and classically styled. But this Texas mansion takes the cake. Not only is it all those things, but it goes one step further: This house bears a striking resemblance to the White House.
Located in Preston Hollow, a ritzy suburb of Dallas, Texas, this $15 million mansion boasts exteriors that mirror those of the president’s home. Both the Dallas White House (as it’s known around town) and the real White House feature Federal-style triangular north porticos, complete with four columns across — eight columns total — as well as the same number of windows, placed in the same fashion along the front. Meanwhile, the back of the dwelling shares the curved south portico with a second-floor deck.
According to listing agent Joan Eleazer, the current owners purchased the house in 2001 and are not the original owners — who built the property in 1996 — so she isn’t quite sure why the house seems to be modeled after the White House, though it’s hard to argue with the similarities.
But the exterior is where the comparison stops. The current owners did extensive remodeling after purchasing the 16,000-square-foot home, including changing the floor plan, Eleazer says. It has four bedrooms and nine baths.
“The home is beautiful,” she says. “The owners put their heart and soul into it. They traveled to Europe with their designer and found all kind of unique additions: fireplaces, flooring, many of the chandeliers.”
The grounds show equal attention to detail: 3.3 walled acres including a koi pond, a swimming pool, a tennis pavilion and manicured landscaping that, frankly, has the White House’s beat.
Property records indicate that the current owners are self-made millionaires Ralph and Cathy Oats, who own Wellness International Network, a multilevel marketing company that sells health products.
[Related: Dream ‘Barn’ of Multilevel Marketer Cost $32M to Build, Now Asks $19.5M (80 photos)]
While President Obama has never been to this Texas White House, he did attend a fundraiser down the street. And among the Oatses’ neighbor is reportedly one H. Ross Perot, the billionaire who ran twice for the real White House.
The home has been on the market for almost a year and a half, first appearing in September 2014 for $19.5 million.
So for any of the soon-to-be washouts from the current presidential campaign: If you can’t make it to the White House, you can still buy a White House.
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(Except where noted, all photos are from the listing, courtesy of the Eleazar Group, Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s International Realty)
