Gov. Newsom Buys $9 Million House in Marin County

Governor Gavin Newsom, through a private LLC, bought a $9 million in the Marin County town of Kentfield on Thursday, where he is expected to begin soon dividing time from staying in Sacramento and commuting from his new home.

Since 2003, California Governors have often split time between living in Sacramento and elsewhere in the state. For both of his terms, former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger flew back and forth between Los Angeles and Sacramento each day on his private “Bear Force One” jet so that he could reside at his home in the Brentwood neighborhood of L.A. Former Governor Jerry Brown had less of a commute, often living in his Oakland home. Until Monday, Newsom appeared to break that trend, as they sold their Marin County house a year after being elected in 2018 and moved to Sacramento full-time, living in the suburb of Fair Oaks.

However, with their eldest child, Montana, officially entering high school for the 2024-2025 school year, the Newsoms said they were looking for a solution so as to not have to greatly disrupt their children’s education. As Newsom is set to leave the Governorship in January 2027 because of term-limits, it would likely mean a split-school situation for their children. After a growing number of rumors in the past few weeks, the Governor’s office confirmed in June that Newsom and his family will now officially split up time living in both Marin County and Sacramento.

“To ensure continuity in their children’s education, the family will split their time between Sacramento and Marin heading into the coming academic year,” the Governor’s office said in June. “The family’s children are transitioning grade levels, including to high school this fall. The Governor and First Partner want to create continuity in their children’s education, recognizing the Governor’s term ends in January 2027.”

That plan moved forward on Thursday when Newsom purchased a six bedroom, 5,609 square feet mansion in Kentfield, a town of around 7,000 with many millionaires and celebrities living in the community. Newsom even bought the house from a billionaire, Hyatt Hotels heir Daniel Pritzker. With Newsom now set to commute even more between the Bay Area and Sacramento for his final two years in office, the move also sets up what he is likely to do afterwards: launch a Presidential run.

With Donald Trump now reelected and Newsom not having to worry about a Kamala Harris reelection in 2028, Newsom is likely to resume his long-rumored plans to run for President following him leaving the Governor’s chair. The House in Kentfield is isolated enough to keep press at a reasonable distance away, and large enough for more advanced security measures such as bodyguards should they be needed.

“Newsom is obviously hoping that, in four years, America will see this as the Western White House,” explained political advisor Daniel Corwin to the Globe on Friday. “This is his Crawford Ranch or Mar-a-Lago. The Kentfield House, you know, we’ll be hearing a lot about it should he run. This isn’t a situation where ‘oh, he bought this house, he’s running’. No It is just a good sign that he is starting to move slowly away from the Governor’s seat and off to his next thing.

“Practically, he wanted his kids in a good school and to have a home ready for post-Governorship. But on a larger level, Newsom is eyeing an older mansion in Washington.”

It is currently unknown how much time Newsom will be splitting between his new home and Sacramento for the next two years.