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A large sprawling mansion with a wood facade surrounded by trees.
Bill Gates’s Medina home.
Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images

Where do Washington State's billionaires live?

From Jeff Bezos to Howard Schultz

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Bill Gates’s Medina home.
| Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images

Those tracking the area’s growing income inequality won’t be surprised that Washington State is home to the two richest men in the world: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. The pair teeter around the tops of richest-people lists depending on how Amazon and Microsoft shares are doing. But lately, Bezos has kept his iron grip on the top spot, and doesn’t show many signs of dropping back to second, although $111.1 billion and $107 billion are both unfathomable amounts of money.

The pair are neighbors not just in net worth, but physical location, both with sprawling estates in the wealthy enclave on Evergreen Point Road in Medina. Bezos owns additional homes from coast to coast, with a massive $23 million home in Washington, DC and a set of ritzy Upper West Side apartments.

Most of the state’s billionaires choose to hang their hats outside Seattle, even if their homes are just outside. The only state billionaires to openly live in Seattle proper are Starbucks founder and short-lived presidential candidate Howard Schultz, in a ritzy gated community in Madison Park, and Nordstrom shareholder and heiress Anne Gittinger, who’s part of an exclusive condo community in Belltown.

While Gates, Bezos, and Schultz are perhaps the most famous on the list, many impossibly rich people—tech billionaires, telecom billionaires, even a sunglasses billionaire—all live, or at least own property, within a few hours of Seattle. While they all don't spend their time living in Washington State exclusively, all of these billionaires own large swaths of property within. And yes, one of them owns an entire island.

Net worths are based on Forbes’s real-time billionaires list as of October 8, 2019.

Note: Some addresses included in the map are used for proximity and not actual addresses. We make no guarantees as to

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Jeff Bezos: Net worth $111.1 billion

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Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos maintains his home in the ultra-rich community of Medina, which he’s had since the late 1990s. The Washington State Bezos property is a 29,000-square-foot estate, complete with both a main house and a boathouse, along 200 yards of shoreline. It’s estimated to be worth around $70 million. He’s registered to vote in a comparably modest midcentury farther south in Medina with an estate and trust lawyer as the listed owner

Bezos also owns property in Beverly Hills, which he expanded in 2017 by buying the lot next door for a cool $12.9 million, and in DC, the former home of a textile museum. In 2019, he added a chunk of New York real estate to his collection of abodes, buying three condos, including a penthouse, in a ritzy Fifth Avenue building.

Bill Gates: Net worth $107 billion

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Bill Gates’s house, dubbed “Xanadu 2.0,” is the stuff of legend around here: It’s located down the street from Bezos in Medina, and when it was built it had 24 bathrooms, seven bedrooms, and a trampoline room with 20-foot ceilings. The pool, at least at the time of its construction, spanned both indoors and outdoors, separated by a glass wall that swimmers can dive underneath. Predating modern smarthomes, Gates’s home has had room-control touchpads and music that can follow visitors from room to room since 1995.

The whole thing took seven years to complete, and the King County Assessor’s office values the home at more than $130 million. A tour alone went for $35,000 at auction.

Not only are Bezos and Gates close in net worth—their properties are located on the same road in Medina. Do billionaires ever have to borrow a cup of sugar?

A large sprawling mansion with a wood facade surrounded by trees. Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images

Steve Ballmer: Net worth $53.5 billion

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Microsoft employee number 30 Steve Ballmer bought this four-bedroom Hunts Point home on two acres in 1987 for $1.33 million. Since then, it’s increased in appraised value to more than $15 million.

A man in a blue shirt and black pants stands on a stage with his arms outstretched. Behind him are multiple posters. One of the posters has a word which reads: Microsoft. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Howard Schultz: Net worth $4.1 billion

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After a legal issue with former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz’s driveway and nearby Viretta Park, he moved to the exclusive 12-home gated community the Reed Estate in Madison Park. One waterfront parcel in the estate with Schultz’s executive assistant listed as a contact was appraised higher than any of its neighbors: nearly $30 million.

Yes, he stops by his neighborhood Starbucks on occasion.

Ken Fisher: Net worth $4.1 billion

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Ken Fisher’s money management firm Fisher Investments has operated out of Camas, located in Southwest Washington, north of Vancouver, since 2015. Last year, he and his family purchased a $10 million, 53-acre parcel of land adjacent, and he spends a lot of time in the southwest Washington town—and apparently settled in, since he’s registered to vote there.

While he’s a recent newcomer to Washington’s slate of billionaires, Fisher has thrown himself head-first into Washington State residency, pouring more than $1.25 million into state politics since 2015, according to Washington State Public Disclosure Commission records. That includes more than $100,000 to Tim Eyman-backed tax-limiting initiatives.

Gabe Newell: Net worth $3.5 billion

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Valve founder and Seattle-native Gabe Newell bought his vacation home in Ocean Park, north of Long Beach, Washington, more than a decade ago after falling in love with the grassy dunes in the surrounding environment. The house was completed by Replinger-Hossner Architects in 2001.

Location is for Ocean Park, not Newell’s home.

In the foreground is a field of long grass. In the distance is a beach and a body of water. There are storm clouds in the sky.
Grassy dunes leading down to the beach in Ocean Park, Washington.
Sarah Anne Lloyd

Charles Simonyi: Net worth $3.6 billion

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Charles Simonyi, Microsoft’s 40th employee, lives in "Villa Simonyi" a.k.a. "The Windows 2000 House." The modern estate, designed by architect Wendell Lovett, was inspired by painter Victor Vasarely, whose work Simonyi collects.

One unnamed architect described the home to The Independent as a “James Bond modern” in 1996: “It has a bed that rotates, and a place by the pool for rock bands to come and play, and he collects the work of a Hungarian abstract painter. There's a whole phone and entertainment console in the toilet. You could spend your day there."

King County appraised the home at $8.2 million.

James Jannard: Net worth $2.9 billion

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While Forbes offhandly mentions a Seattle residence in its billionaire rankings, Oakley sunglasses mogul Jannard is best-known as owning the entirety of 500-acre Spieden Island in the San Juans, which he purchased in 1997 for $22 million. San Juan County property records show no recent sales, although the property is owned by an LLC, a common masking tactic for high-profile property buyers (this one is called “Under the Radar,” which is appropriate).

According the county, though, Jannard has not masked the several plots land he owns on Crane Island—a small island off the southwest coast of Orcas Island—or his $2 million property along Orcas’s West Sound.

Craig McCaw: net worth $1.9 billion

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Craig McCaw, founder of what used to be McCaw Cellular, bought his Hunts Point property, just a stone’s throw from Ballmer’s, from saxophonist Kenny G (yes, Kenny G) in 1995 for an undisclosed amount. The Seattle Times described it at the time as a “12,000-square-foot English-style manor.”

Property records show that as of 2013, the home now belongs to his brother, fellow cable magnate Bruce McCaw—but it wouldn’t be the first time the two owned property together. While it’s currently held in trust, both brothers are associated with a vacant mansion in the Denny-Blaine neighborhood of Seattle. Regardless, the property is still in the McCaw family. King County recently appraised the home at more than $30 million.

Other properties associated with the McCaw family, public records show, include a luxury condo in Kirkland,

Anne Gittinger: Net worth $1.1 billion

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Anne Gittinger, a member of the Nordstrom family and, along with her brother, one of the department store’s major shareholders, has been associated with this condo in Market Place Tower since at least the early 1990s—and is still registered to vote here. The unit is one of just seven in the building, which is primarily an office tower. It’s currently partially held in trust.

Bruce Nordstrom: Net worth $1.1 billion

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Public records show Bruce Nordstrom purchased a house in the Mercer Island waterfront neighborhood surrounding Groveland Park in the late 1980s—although he’s registered to vote at Market Place Tower where his sister Anne Gittinger lives. Along with Gittinger, Nordstrom is one of the biggest individual shareholders in the Nordstrom department store chain.

Location is approximate.

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Jeff Bezos: Net worth $111.1 billion

Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos maintains his home in the ultra-rich community of Medina, which he’s had since the late 1990s. The Washington State Bezos property is a 29,000-square-foot estate, complete with both a main house and a boathouse, along 200 yards of shoreline. It’s estimated to be worth around $70 million. He’s registered to vote in a comparably modest midcentury farther south in Medina with an estate and trust lawyer as the listed owner

Bezos also owns property in Beverly Hills, which he expanded in 2017 by buying the lot next door for a cool $12.9 million, and in DC, the former home of a textile museum. In 2019, he added a chunk of New York real estate to his collection of abodes, buying three condos, including a penthouse, in a ritzy Fifth Avenue building.

Bill Gates: Net worth $107 billion

Bill Gates’s house, dubbed “Xanadu 2.0,” is the stuff of legend around here: It’s located down the street from Bezos in Medina, and when it was built it had 24 bathrooms, seven bedrooms, and a trampoline room with 20-foot ceilings. The pool, at least at the time of its construction, spanned both indoors and outdoors, separated by a glass wall that swimmers can dive underneath. Predating modern smarthomes, Gates’s home has had room-control touchpads and music that can follow visitors from room to room since 1995.

The whole thing took seven years to complete, and the King County Assessor’s office values the home at more than $130 million. A tour alone went for $35,000 at auction.

Not only are Bezos and Gates close in net worth—their properties are located on the same road in Medina. Do billionaires ever have to borrow a cup of sugar?

A large sprawling mansion with a wood facade surrounded by trees. Ted Soqui/Corbis via Getty Images

Steve Ballmer: Net worth $53.5 billion

Microsoft employee number 30 Steve Ballmer bought this four-bedroom Hunts Point home on two acres in 1987 for $1.33 million. Since then, it’s increased in appraised value to more than $15 million.

A man in a blue shirt and black pants stands on a stage with his arms outstretched. Behind him are multiple posters. One of the posters has a word which reads: Microsoft. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Howard Schultz: Net worth $4.1 billion

After a legal issue with former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz’s driveway and nearby Viretta Park, he moved to the exclusive 12-home gated community the Reed Estate in Madison Park. One waterfront parcel in the estate with Schultz’s executive assistant listed as a contact was appraised higher than any of its neighbors: nearly $30 million.

Yes, he stops by his neighborhood Starbucks on occasion.

Ken Fisher: Net worth $4.1 billion

Ken Fisher’s money management firm Fisher Investments has operated out of Camas, located in Southwest Washington, north of Vancouver, since 2015. Last year, he and his family purchased a $10 million, 53-acre parcel of land adjacent, and he spends a lot of time in the southwest Washington town—and apparently settled in, since he’s registered to vote there.

While he’s a recent newcomer to Washington’s slate of billionaires, Fisher has thrown himself head-first into Washington State residency, pouring more than $1.25 million into state politics since 2015, according to Washington State Public Disclosure Commission records. That includes more than $100,000 to Tim Eyman-backed tax-limiting initiatives.

Gabe Newell: Net worth $3.5 billion

Valve founder and Seattle-native Gabe Newell bought his vacation home in Ocean Park, north of Long Beach, Washington, more than a decade ago after falling in love with the grassy dunes in the surrounding environment. The house was completed by Replinger-Hossner Architects in 2001.

Location is for Ocean Park, not Newell’s home.

In the foreground is a field of long grass. In the distance is a beach and a body of water. There are storm clouds in the sky.
Grassy dunes leading down to the beach in Ocean Park, Washington.
Sarah Anne Lloyd

Charles Simonyi: Net worth $3.6 billion

Charles Simonyi, Microsoft’s 40th employee, lives in "Villa Simonyi" a.k.a. "The Windows 2000 House." The modern estate, designed by architect Wendell Lovett, was inspired by painter Victor Vasarely, whose work Simonyi collects.

One unnamed architect described the home to The Independent as a “James Bond modern” in 1996: “It has a bed that rotates, and a place by the pool for rock bands to come and play, and he collects the work of a Hungarian abstract painter. There's a whole phone and entertainment console in the toilet. You could spend your day there."

King County appraised the home at $8.2 million.

James Jannard: Net worth $2.9 billion

While Forbes offhandly mentions a Seattle residence in its billionaire rankings, Oakley sunglasses mogul Jannard is best-known as owning the entirety of 500-acre Spieden Island in the San Juans, which he purchased in 1997 for $22 million. San Juan County property records show no recent sales, although the property is owned by an LLC, a common masking tactic for high-profile property buyers (this one is called “Under the Radar,” which is appropriate).

According the county, though, Jannard has not masked the several plots land he owns on Crane Island—a small island off the southwest coast of Orcas Island—or his $2 million property along Orcas’s West Sound.

Craig McCaw: net worth $1.9 billion

Craig McCaw, founder of what used to be McCaw Cellular, bought his Hunts Point property, just a stone’s throw from Ballmer’s, from saxophonist Kenny G (yes, Kenny G) in 1995 for an undisclosed amount. The Seattle Times described it at the time as a “12,000-square-foot English-style manor.”

Property records show that as of 2013, the home now belongs to his brother, fellow cable magnate Bruce McCaw—but it wouldn’t be the first time the two owned property together. While it’s currently held in trust, both brothers are associated with a vacant mansion in the Denny-Blaine neighborhood of Seattle. Regardless, the property is still in the McCaw family. King County recently appraised the home at more than $30 million.

Other properties associated with the McCaw family, public records show, include a luxury condo in Kirkland,

Anne Gittinger: Net worth $1.1 billion

Anne Gittinger, a member of the Nordstrom family and, along with her brother, one of the department store’s major shareholders, has been associated with this condo in Market Place Tower since at least the early 1990s—and is still registered to vote here. The unit is one of just seven in the building, which is primarily an office tower. It’s currently partially held in trust.

Bruce Nordstrom: Net worth $1.1 billion

Public records show Bruce Nordstrom purchased a house in the Mercer Island waterfront neighborhood surrounding Groveland Park in the late 1980s—although he’s registered to vote at Market Place Tower where his sister Anne Gittinger lives. Along with Gittinger, Nordstrom is one of the biggest individual shareholders in the Nordstrom department store chain.

Location is approximate.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Erin Ryan (@sadbumble) on