Fact Check: Did Gavin Newsom buy $2.5M Utah mansion despite earning only $140K salary?

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A viral social media video claims to show a lavish mansion owned by California Governor Gavin Newsom, with users questioning how he could afford such an expensive property on a reported $140,000 government salary.

The clip, shared widely across platforms like TikTok, X, and Facebook, quickly fueled speculation about Newsom’s wealth and finances.

Does Gavin Newsom own the lavish mansion despite his low salary?

In early August 2025, a video showing a luxury home with panoramic views went viral across social media platforms, with captions like, “Gavin Newsom’s house. Not bad for a 140k a year salary.”

The claim implied that Newsom’s public servant salary couldn't realistically support such opulence, fueling speculation about his finances and political integrity.

The video, originally posted on TikTok and later reshared on X (formerly Twitter), amassed over 1.5 million views.

It featured a slow drive past a large home, allegedly belonging to Newsom, with many users echoing concerns about how a state governor could afford such a property.

Home shown does not belong to Gavin Newsom and salary figure is 'inaccurate'

The house shown in the video is not owned by Gavin Newsom or his family. A July 2024 Instagram post featuring the same home reveals a street sign for Deer Crest Lane in Alpine, Utah, a wealthy suburb that’s nowhere near California’s capital, Sacramento.

Property records accessed via Whitepages.com show the home is owned by two individuals unrelated to Newsom.

Additionally, the viral claim about Newsom’s salary is outdated or entirely made up. According to the California Department of Human Resources, Newsom’s current annual salary is $242,295, not $140,000.

No credible news outlet has ever reported that Newsom owns property in Utah. A Zillow listing estimates the market value of the home seen in the video at over $2.56 million, but that has no bearing on the governor's actual real estate holdings.

Gavin Newsom's business background and actual properties

While Gavin Newsom does own expensive real estate, they are not in Utah. In November 2024, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that he and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, purchased a $9.1 million home in Marin County, and continue to own a $3.7 million home in Fair Oaks, which they bought in 2018.

As for his income, Newsom isn’t just a career politician. A 2018 Los Angeles Times report detailed his multimillion-dollar business ventures, including restaurants, wineries, hotels, and shops under the PlumpJack Group, which he co-founded. These ventures, along with ties to the wealthy Getty family, explain his financial means.

The first known attempt to link Newsom to the Utah home came from TikTok user @thesmithfamily, who posted the original video in July 2024 and reposted it again in July 2025, sparking a new round of misinformation.