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It’s not the White House, but it sure is a nice retreat away from the District.
Vice President JD Vance, his wife Usha and their four children are moving to the country.
But don’t expect a “Hillbilly Elegy” kind of hardscrabble country existence.
Instead, the Second Family — who welcomed their fourth child, Alec Neel, on Sunday — are moving to Middleburg, VA. That’s the “horse and hunt” capital of America, and one of the most elite, under-the-radar and exclusive enclaves in the country.
The Vances are renting a century-plus-old manor house at Wolver Hill Farm, a 500-acre estate owned by federal contractor Charles “Chuck” Kuhn, a data center developer with close ties to the White House, sources told Gimme Shelter.
“It’s a lovely, idyllic place to raise a family,” a source said. “It’s a whole Kennedy-esque compound, with four homes on the property. Usha just had her baby. It’s a great place to nest — a wonderful community. It’s so quiet. You can see why they would want a place like that on a quiet country lane with beautiful trees and stone walls.”
Kuhn did not return calls at press time.
Secret Service security detail will move into an adjacent home on the property, sources said.
If the Vances need help moving, Kuhn can help with that, too.
He’s also the founder of JK Moving Services, which moved Donald Trump in and out of the White House — twice — as well as other presidents from both parties, including the Clintons, the Bidens and the Obamas.
While the moving company is non-partisan, we hear that Kuhn is keen on backing Vance’s potential presidential run in 2028.
Black SUVs and a helicopter were spotted at the farm a few weeks ago, which got locals buzzing on social media. Many shared concerns that choppers and the Secret Service security will ruin their idyll.
The small town of just 750 people has some wealthy and powerful residents. They include Erik Prince, the MAGA ally and founder of the defunct private mercenary company Blackwater, which is now part of Constellis, a security and defense conglomerate. Prince’s estate, known as Blackwater Ranch, is across the road from Wolver Hill Farm.
One of the world’s richest women, billionaire candy queen heir Jacqueline Mars, also lives nearby, in the Plains, where she operates a working farm and equestrian estate known as Stonehall Farm.
The farm itself is adjacent to the exclusive Salamander Resort & Spa, the flagship five-star luxury resort founded by Black Entertainment Television co-founder Sheila Johnson, the country’s first black female billionaire.
The resort, which sits on 340 acres, is a big draw for DC power players and political fundraisers.
The Vances won’t have much to do in the one-traffic-stop town, just 45 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C., but perhaps that’s the point.
For meals, there’s a local Safeway for groceries, and along with Salamander’s offerings, there’s the Red Fox Inn & Tavern, which was founded in 1728 and bills itself as one of the oldest continuously operated inns in the country. It’s where “happy hour” is called the “Middleburg Social Hour,” and offers specials like a half bottle of Thibaut-Janisson with “chips and caviar” for $48.
A White House source said that Vance will keep the US Naval Observatory in DC as his primary residence. It’s where all vice presidential families have lived since Walter Mondale in 1977.
The Vances’ new Middleburg home is 8,532 square feet and comes with six bedrooms and seven fireplaces. Kuhn bought the property with his wife, Stacy, via an LLC, for $8.5 million in 2020. The Kuhns are also placing a conservation easement on the estate to protect it from future development, according to a Kuhn company press release.
A White House source declined to comment on the terms of the lease but said: “It’s a second home. The purpose is to serve as a getaway outside the city for their children and they plan to go there on weekends.”
Real estate sources tell Gimme Shelter that if Vance were to pay a monthly rent for the property, it would cost around $20,000 a month.
Middleburg has also been home to Camelot royalty.
In the early 1960s, President John F. Kennedy and his then-wife Jackie built a home on a massive estate on 167 acres in the area. They called it Wexford.
Jackie was keen on having her children grow up riding horses.
Even movie stars have been drawn to the quiet chi-chi, equestrian life of Middleburg.
Elizabeth Taylor lived just outside Middleburg when she was married to her sixth husband, Senator John Warner. During their marriage, from 1976 to 1982, they lived at Atoka Farm, a 400-plus acre estate in Marshall, VA, where they were married.
In addition to the deal with Vance, Kuhn is also selling a 149-acre parcel of land known as the Middleburg Training Center in Loudoun County to the US Army, to house the army’s famed Caisson ceremonial horses that participate in funeral ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery.
The controversial sale was opposed by the Virginia Equine Alliance and locals who want to preserve the property for thoroughbred racing and training.
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