Although he tries to distinguish himself from wealthy, establishment front-runner Mitt Romney, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum owns a $2 million, five-acre home in the high-priced suburb of Great Falls outside of Washington, the Washington Examiner reported on Thursday.
And, while saying on the campaign trail that he can personally relate to average Americans with underwater mortgages, Santorum was able to refinance his mortgage at reasonable rates when the home dropped in value, according to interviews and documents reviewed by the newspaper. Santorum also purchased the home, with an 800-square-foot swimming pool, in an atypical fashion, using a trust that obscured the identity of the true owner, the paper said.
The Santorum campaign would not comment on his housing situation, according to spokeswoman Alice Stewart, who questioned why the Examiner was publishing the story because no one had brought it up as an issue in his campaign. Santorum bought the house in 2007, after losing his reelection bid for the Senate. The Santorums have another home in Pennsylvania, the state he represented in Congress.
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