The possibility of eccentric billionaire Elon Musk living or owning property in Austin has been a topic of debate and rumors since the head of Tesla and SpaceX first said he moved to Texas in 2020.
But while Musk has proudly declared himself a resident of the Lone Star State, it’s been much less clear if he might also be a resident of Central Texas.
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, the billionaire has been living for much of the past year in a mansion on Lake Austin owned by a longtime friend and also has been shopping for one of his own in the Austin area.
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Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper reported that Musk has been staying in the waterfront estate of fellow billionaire Ken Howery.
But both Musk and Howery called the Wall Street Journal report inaccurate.
“The WSJ article is false. I don’t live there and am not looking to buy a house anywhere,” Musk said in a statement to Insider.
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Howery said in a text message to the Wall Street Journal after publication of its story that Musk “does not live at my house, he lives in South Texas.”
“He stayed at the house as my guest occasionally when traveling to Austin,” Howery said.
The mansion cited by the Journal is located near Mount Bonnell and is part of an exclusive development called Watersedge. The expansive digs include almost 8,000 feet of interior space, a waterfront pool, a jacuzzi and a private boat slip in a neighborhood guarded by several sets of gates and a guardhouse.
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Musk has said that his primary residence is in a $50,000 modular mini house in Boca Chica, near SpaceX’s launch facility in South Texas.
Still, he clearly spends significant time in Austin, where Tesla is building a $1.1 billion factory and where the company’s official headquarters is now located.
In addition, he has said previously that he was staying at a friend’s house in Austin while in the area for a shareholder’s meeting, although it was uncertain at the time to whom he was referring.
During Tesla’s October shareholders meeting held virtually from the Austin factory — the same event in which he announced the decision to move the company’s headquarters to Austin from California — Musk referenced staying at a friend’s house in the region. He said he used the self-driving feature of his Tesla car to get from his friend’s residence to the event.
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“I actually drove here from a friend’s house I am staying out in Austin, which is quite far away and has quite a complicated drive, and the car took me all the way from my friend’s house to the Gigafactory with no intervention. So, perfect drive,” Musk said.
Musk also mentioned he was at a friend’s house in Austin during the severe freeze in February, saying it lost power, heat and internet access. Grimes, Musk’s now-ex girlfriend, also said that she lived in Austin.
Musk has long known Howery, who co-founded PayPal Holdings, where Musk was once an executive. Howery also later co-founded a venture capital firm with Peter Thiel called Founders Fund, which has backed some of Musk’s companies.
Recently, Howery has been traveling the world, leaving his house empty for Musk’s use, the Wall Street Journal reported.
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According to Travis Central Appraisal District property records, the owner of the mansion is Edge Trust U/A/D, and it was valued at $12.6 million last year. It’s unclear if Musk is paying rent to Howery, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The newspaper also reported that Musk may be looking for his own property in the region and has had several real estate agents show him Austin-area houses for sale. The report said he has shown interest in several houses, including a custom mansion owned by Austin-based jewelry designer Kendra Scott, although Scott declined to comment to the Journal.
Musk announced publicly last year that he was selling almost all of his physical possessions to simplify his life and would own no property or houses, and he’s been selling properties since.
He is registered to vote in Cameron County, near Boca Chica beach, at a home built in 1971 that occupies one-fifth of an acre, the Journal reported. The house is owned by SpaceX, according to the newspaper.
Last December, Musk confirmed he had moved to Texas from California — without disclosing where — saying he wanted to be closer to the new Tesla factory on the outskirts of Austin and to SpaceX’s South Texas facilities.
Amid the pandemic, Central Texas has increasingly become a center of activity for Musk and his various companies.
His tunneling and infrastructure company, The Boring Co., has had a presence in the area since last year and purchased land in Bastrop County. His neurotechnology company, Neuralink, has had job postings in Austin in recent months. His private foundation, the Musk Foundation, moved to Austin in the summer of 2020, and SpaceX may also be expanding into Austin.
American-Statesman staff writer Shonda Novak contributed to this report.