Bushes Confirm Purchase of Dallas Home

By Todd J. Gillman and Rudolph Bush

RISMEDIA, Dec. 8, 2008-(MCT)-The White House confirmed Thursday that the Bushes have purchased a house in Dallas for the couple to live in after his presidency ends in January.First lady Laura Bush’s office declined to specify where the house is, but it appears likely the couple will live on Daria Place, a cul-de-sac in the upscale Preston Hollow neighborhood.

“The president and Mrs. Bush do not have occupancy of the home, and therefore, no additional details will be provided,” spokeswoman Sally McDonough said in a written statement.

The president’s accountant in Midland, Texas, Robert McCleskey, purchased the house at 10141 Daria Place as a trustee on Oct. 3, according to records on file with the Dallas Central Appraisal District, which values the home at $2,078,660.

McCleskey, who has handled President Bush’s personal finances for years, declined to say Thursday for whom he purchased the property. The seller, Dallas developer Dan Boeckman, also declined to discuss the transaction when reached by telephone Thursday.

Built in 1959, the home sits on 1.13 acres, has four bedrooms, 4 ½ baths, a wet bar, a fireplace and 8,501 square feet of living space, including 896 square feet of servant quarters.

D magazine’s real estate blog reported Wednesday night that the house next door went under contract last week but that the buyer remains a mystery. The deal is scheduled to close next Wednesday.

That house had been listed for sale at $1.6 million-unlike the house McCleskey bought, which was never formally on the market.

The next-door house is about half the size, on a slightly larger parcel and would be well-suited for Secret Service or even guest quarters.

Both properties, as D noted, back to estates of 14 and 24 acres, the latter owned by investor Tom Hicks-making it a site the Secret Service could approve. Hicks could not be reached Thursday morning for comment.

Laura Bush reiterated the couple’s plans to return to Dallas on Wednesday, but she was vague on whether they have settled on a place to call home after Jan. 20.

“We will be moving to Dallas in January, and there might be a new house coming along,” she told reporters during a tour of White House holiday decorations. “So I think that’s where we’ll spend our Christmas money.”

The Bushes sold their home in Preston Hollow after George W. Bush became governor of Texas.

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