Paul Castellano House: Address, Price and Full Details in 2026

Paul Castellano House

Paul Castellano House is one of the most historically famous and talked-about mob properties in the entire United States, and I have been wanting to write a proper detailed piece about it for a long time. Located at 177 Benedict Road in the Todt Hill neighborhood of Staten Island, New York, this massive 33,000-square-foot mansion was built in the early 1980s for Paul Castellano, the boss of the Gambino crime family, one of the most powerful organized crime figures in American history.

Castellano spent over a million dollars building the estate, which quickly became known as the White House among both mobsters and FBI agents because of how grand and powerful it looked sitting on its hilltop in Staten Island. Paul Castellano was the head of the Gambino family from 1976 until his assassination outside Sparks Steak House in Midtown Manhattan on December 16, 1985, and this house was the center of his entire operation. Before I take you inside, also check out this piece on the Kim Kardashian House if you enjoy detailed looks at iconic properties.

Who Was Paul Castellano?

Paul Castellano, whose full name was Constantino Paul Castellano, was born on June 26, 1915, in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, to Sicilian immigrant parents. His father Giuseppe was a butcher and an early member of the Mangano crime family, which later became the Gambino family, so Paul grew up around organized crime from a very young age. He dropped out of school in the eighth grade, learned butchering and running numbers from his father, and was connected to the mob his whole life.

Who Was Paul Castellano?

He became the boss of the Gambino crime family in 1976 after his cousin and brother-in-law Carlo Gambino died and named him as his successor, making him at that time the most powerful mob boss in New York City. He was known by two nicknames, Big Paulie because of his large physical build, and the Howard Hughes of the Mob because of how reclusive and business-minded he was, preferring to run his empire from his Staten Island mansion rather than being out on the streets with his crew.

Paul Castellano House Location

Paul Castellano’s famous mansion is located at 177 Benedict Road, Todt Hill, Staten Island, New York 10304, sitting on the corner of Benedict Road and St. James Place on a hilltop estate of 1.75 acres in what is widely considered the most prestigious and expensive residential neighborhood in all of Staten Island, where former New York Mets pitcher John Franco also lives.

My Personal Tour of Paul Castellano’s House

I have always been fascinated by historically significant properties, and Paul Castellano’s White House in Todt Hill is one of those places that feels completely different the moment you drive up to it. The mansion sits on a private elevated lot with a long driveway, and even from the outside you can see why both the FBI and the mob called it the White House. It is big, grand, and built to make a statement about power and money.

I have explored plenty of interesting celebrity and notable figure homes, including this piece on the Donnie Swaggart House, but there is something about a property with this much history attached to it that makes walking through it feel unlike anything else. Let me take you inside and show you what Castellano built for himself at the height of his power.

Paul Castellano House Interior

The interior of the White House was built to reflect exactly what Castellano wanted people to think about him: power, wealth, and European class. The foyer and dining room are fully lined with Carrara marble imported from Italy, which is one of the most expensive and recognizable building materials in the world and was a very deliberate choice that set the tone for everything else in the house.

Paul Castellano House Interior 1

The overall design of the interior is classic Italian palace style, with ornate detailing, high ceilings, and heavy finishes throughout every room. The house has 17 rooms in total, and while Castellano rarely left it during his later years as boss, he used it to receive his capos and conduct business in a setting that made very clear who was in charge.

Paul Castellano House Living Area

The main living area inside the White House is a large, formal space designed for entertaining and receiving guests, which in Castellano’s case meant his capos, associates, and people who needed to report to the boss. The rooms are spacious with high ceilings, heavy drapes, and that same Italian palace influence that runs through the entire property.

Castellano was known for walking around his mansion in expensive dressing gowns and velvet slippers while conducting business, which tells you everything about how he used the living spaces in this house. The ground floor layout connects the main reception and living areas, and the whole setup was clearly designed to project authority and control to anyone who walked through the front door.

Paul Castellano House Bedrooms

The mansion has 8 bedrooms, all of them en-suite, meaning each bedroom has its own private bathroom attached directly to it. The master suite is the largest and most lavishly finished room in the house, befitting the boss of the most powerful crime family in New York.

Paul Castellano House Bedrooms 1

Each of the eight bedrooms was finished with the same attention to detail and quality of materials that Castellano applied throughout the rest of the property, with the imported marble and classical Italian design style carried through consistently. The scale of the bedroom count reflects how this property was built not just as a personal home but as a headquarters where family members and trusted associates could also stay.

Paul Castellano House Bathrooms

The White House has 17 bathrooms in total, which is a remarkable number even by the standards of the most expensive celebrity homes being built today. Given that the property has 8 bedrooms and 17 bathrooms, there are clearly multiple bathrooms serving shared areas, sitting rooms, and entertaining spaces throughout the building.

Paul Castellano House Bathrooms 1

The bathrooms throughout the mansion are finished with the same Carrara marble that lines the foyer and dining room, keeping a consistent and very expensive aesthetic across every room in the house. The level of detail and quality in the bathrooms was part of Castellano’s overall goal of building something that looked and felt more like an Italian palazzo than a private home in Staten Island.

Paul Castellano House Kitchen and Dining Area

The kitchen inside the White House is a commercial-grade setup, which makes complete sense when you consider that Castellano’s legitimate business background was in wholesale meat distribution and butchery, and that the house regularly hosted large gatherings of mob figures and associates.

Paul Castellano House Kitchen 1 1

The dining room is one of the most impressive spaces in the entire property, fully lined with imported Carrara marble and large enough to seat a significant number of people for formal dinners. The connection between the kitchen and the grand dining room reflects how seriously Castellano took the social and ceremonial aspects of being the boss, where meals and meetings often went hand in hand inside the White House.

Paul Castellano House Key Features

  • 33,000 square foot mansion on a 1.75-acre hilltop estate in Todt Hill, Staten Island
  • 8 en-suite bedrooms, each with its own private bathroom
  • 17 bathrooms in total throughout the property
  • Foyer and dining room fully lined with imported Italian Carrara marble
  • Indoor and outdoor Olympic-sized swimming pools
  • 13-car showroom-style garage
  • Home theater
  • Billiards room
  • Personal beauty salon
  • Gym with sauna
  • Temperature-controlled wine cellar
  • Solarium
  • Library
  • Elevator connecting floors
  • Italian fountain on the grounds
  • English garden with mature landscaping
  • Private hilltop location with gated entry

Paul Castellano House Exterior and Outdoor Space

From the outside, the White House looks exactly like what Castellano intended it to look like, a classic Italian palace dropped onto a hilltop in Staten Island, with intricate stone details, fancy balconies, and a grand entrance that demanded respect from anyone approaching it.

Paul Castellano House Exterior 1

The 1.75-acre grounds include both an indoor and an outdoor Olympic-sized swimming pool, a beautifully maintained English garden, an Italian fountain, and enough space for the 13-car garage that sits on the property. The elevated position of the estate on the Todt Hill hilltop gives it a commanding view of the surrounding neighborhood and adds to the overall sense of power and separation from everything around it, which was very much by design.

Where Is the Paul Castellano House Today?

As of 2026, the White House at 177 Benedict Road is still standing and is privately owned by Sal Rusi, the CEO of Salmar Properties, who purchased it in the year 2000 for $3.1 million. Rusi listed the property for sale in June 2023 at $16.8 million, then relisted it through RJM Realty Empire Inc. at $18 million in 2024, but as of December 2025 he took it off the market after failing to find a buyer despite the property receiving over 44,000 views and more than 2,300 saves on Zillow.

Where Is the Paul Castellano House Today 1

The house is a private residence and is not open to the public. It remains the most expensive property in Staten Island and holds enormous historical significance as one of the most famous mob homes in American history. Now that we have covered the White House itself, let me walk you through what else we know about the properties connected to Paul Castellano’s life and the current status of his former estate.

Paul Castellano House Other Properties

PropertyLocationDetailsCurrent Status
The White House (Main Mansion)177 Benedict Rd, Todt Hill, Staten Island, NY 1030433,000 sq ft, 8 beds, 17 baths, 13-car garage, indoor and outdoor pools, marble throughout, 1.75 acresOwned by Sal Rusi (CEO, Salmar Properties) since 2000. Bought for $3.1M. Listed at $18M in 2024, taken off market Dec 2025. Not sold.
Brooklyn Boyhood HomeBensonhurst, Brooklyn, New YorkWorking-class neighborhood home where Castellano grew up with his family. His father ran a butcher shop and numbers operation from the area.No longer associated with the Castellano family. Private residence in Brooklyn.
Sparks Steak House (Assassination Site)210 E 46th Street, Midtown Manhattan, NY 10017Not a residence but the location where Castellano was shot and killed on December 16, 1985, as he arrived for a meeting.Still operating as a restaurant in Midtown Manhattan as of 2026.

Paul Castellano House Staten Island White House History

The so-called “White House” on Staten Island was built by Paul Castellano in 1976 and took about four years to complete, finishing around 1980. It cost over $1 million at the time (about $3 million today), showing his wealth and power. Castellano rarely left the mansion and ran the Gambino crime family from inside it. Instead of meeting his crew outside, he made them come to him, which many saw as disrespectful.

While his men worked on the streets, Castellano lived comfortably, wearing expensive clothes and demanding a 15% cut instead of the usual 10%. Over time, the mansion became a symbol of how disconnected he was. John Gotti eventually turned against him, leading to Castellano’s assassination in 1985. The house was later sold to Sal Rusi in 2000 for $3.1 million, listed for up to $18 million in 2024, and taken off the market in December 2025 without a buyer.

DetailInfo
Address177 Benedict Road, Todt Hill, Staten Island, NY 10304
BuiltCommissioned 1976, completed approximately 1980
Original Build CostOver $1 million (approximately $3 million in today’s money)
Size33,000 square feet on 1.75 acres
NicknameThe White House
Who Gave It the NicknameBoth FBI agents and Gambino family members
Bought by Sal RusiYear 2000 for $3.1 million
Listed for SaleJune 2023 at $16.8M, relisted 2024 at $18M
Sale ResultTaken off market December 2025, no buyer found
Current Estimated Value$16 to $18 Million
Current OwnerSal Rusi, CEO of Salmar Properties
Public AccessPrivate residence, not open to the public

Paul Castellano Net Worth in 2026

In the early 1980s, Paul Castellano had an estimated net worth of about $20 million (around $50 million today). His money came from legal businesses like Dial Poultry and construction deals through his son’s company Scara-Mix, as well as illegal activities run by the Gambino crime family.

Paul Castellano Net Worth in 2026 1

According to Sammy Gravano, bosses like him could earn $10–15 million a year, often hidden in cash or offshore accounts. His rich lifestyle and higher demands on his crew eventually created resentment within his own family.

Final Remarks

I put a serious amount of research into this article because Paul Castellano’s house is not just a building. It is a piece of American history that tells the story of organized crime at its most powerful and how that power eventually collapsed from the inside. The White House still stands today in Todt Hill, Staten Island, 40 years after its owner was killed, and it is still the most expensive property in the borough at $18 million. That tells you something about how exceptional it is, even if the history attached to it makes it a difficult sale like the Dave Chappelle House.

FAQs

Can you visit Paul Castellano’s house in Staten Island?

No, the property at 177 Benedict Road is a private residence owned by Sal Rusi and is not open to the public, so visiting without permission would be trespassing.

Who killed Paul Castellano and why?

John Gotti orchestrated the assassination on December 16, 1985, primarily because of Castellano’s greed, his reclusive leadership style, and his plan to break up Gotti’s crew.

What happened to the Gambino family after Castellano died?

John Gotti took over as boss two weeks after the assassination and ran the family through the late 1980s until he was convicted in 1992 and sentenced to life in prison.

Was Paul Castellano ever portrayed in movies or TV?

Yes, he was portrayed by Richard C. Sarafian in the 1996 HBO movie Gotti, by Abe Vigoda in Witness to the Mob in 1998, and by Chazz Palminteri in the 2001 TNT film Boss of Bosses.

What legitimate businesses did Paul Castellano run?

He ran a wholesale poultry and meat distribution company called Dial Poultry and had major interests in the New York construction industry through his son Philip’s concrete firm Scara-Mix.

What is Paul Castellano’s house worth today in 2026?

The property was listed for $18 million in 2024 through RJM Realty Empire Inc. but was taken off the market in December 2025 without a buyer, and it remains the most expensive property in Staten Island.

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