For decades, one of Ohio’s most consequential retail fortunes lived quietly behind the hedges of Bexley, a leafy Columbus suburb better known for tree-lined streets and historic architecture than for billionaire compounds. That is what makes the Jay Schottenstein house such an interesting story. It never looked for attention, and yet it sat close enough to the Ohio Governor’s Residence to be considered one of the neighborhood’s most notable addresses.
The house itself is a story of quiet Midwest wealth. But the more recent chapter, involving a reported sale to a national political figure, is what has actually put this property back in the news.
Who Is Jay Schottenstein?
Jay Schottenstein is an entrepreneur from Columbus, Ohio, born in 1954, who built on a retail empire his family had already spent generations assembling. He is the chairman and CEO of Schottenstein Stores Corporation, American Eagle Outfitters, and American Signature, and he also chairs Designer Brands, the parent company of the DSW shoe chain.
The family business goes back further than Jay’s own career. The Schottensteins’ retail success traces to 1917, when Jay’s great-grandfather Ephraim Schottenstein opened Value City in Columbus. Jay is the son of Geraldine and Jerome Schottenstein, and his father, uncles, and grandfather were the ones who built Schottenstein Stores Corporation into a national name before Jay took the reins. He went on to earn a business degree from Indiana University Bloomington and joined the family furniture business not long after graduating.
Beyond retail, Jay and his wife Jeanie are known in Columbus for a low profile, deliberately so. A 2018 Columbus Monthly profile described Jay as generally considered the second-richest person in Central Ohio, behind only L Brands billionaire Les Wexner, though Jay himself tends to avoid publicity around his private holdings. The couple’s philanthropy runs largely through Jewish cultural and educational causes and through significant giving to Ohio State University, including the arena that carries the Schottenstein family name.
Net worth figures attached to Jay Schottenstein vary enormously depending on the source, ranging from the low hundreds of millions to well over two billion dollars, largely because his wealth sits across privately held family businesses that are not required to disclose full financials. Forbes named the broader Schottenstein family among America’s richest families in 2015, with a reported net worth of 2.7 billion dollars at that time. Treat any more specific, more recent figure with some skepticism.
| Jay Schottenstein: Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1954, Columbus, Ohio |
| Occupation | Chairman and CEO, Schottenstein Stores Corporation and American Eagle Outfitters |
| Also chairs | Designer Brands (DSW), American Signature |
| Education | Indiana University Bloomington |
| Spouse | Jeanie |
| Family net worth (Forbes, 2015) | Reported 2.7 billion dollars |
Where Does Jay Schottenstein Live?
For nearly 40 years, Jay Schottenstein’s home base has been Bexley, Ohio, a small, historic suburb tucked against Columbus’s east side. Bexley is known for its proximity to the Ohio Governor’s Mansion, the official residence of the state’s governor since 1957, and for a concentration of large, historic homes built in the early 20th century.
It is worth separating two Schottenstein properties that often get conflated online. One frequently cited address, 291 N. Drexel Ave., has been in the Schottenstein family since 1964 and is currently owned by Jonathan Schottenstein, Jay’s son and the fourth-generation president of Value City Furniture’s parent company, American Signature. That home was listed for sale in 2025. It is a family property, but it is not, and has not been, Jay’s personal residence.
Jay’s own longtime home sits on a separate Bexley street, close enough to the governor’s mansion that local coverage has repeatedly described it as sitting steps away. County property records list the home under Jay Schottenstein’s name, with a mailing address tied to Schottenstein Stores Corporation’s Columbus offices.
Inside the Estate
Walking the grounds, the scale of the place is obvious before you even reach the front door. County assessor records put the home’s total living area at just over 14,400 square feet, spread across a main house built in 1912 on a 2.87-acre lot, generous by any Bexley standard and enormous by national suburban norms. The exterior is brick, in what the county auditor rates as very good condition, a reflection of decades of upkeep by a family that clearly never treated the property as a stopgap.
Property records show three fireplaces scattered through the home, along with a mix of full and half bathrooms across two main floors. Public listings for comparable Bexley estates in this price bracket typically describe formal living and dining rooms, a family room, a finished lower level built for entertaining, and manicured, established grounds, features consistent with what county records show for this property’s size and age. I have avoided repeating specific interior finish claims (marble entryways, dedicated cinema rooms, and similar details) that circulate online but that I could not verify against this specific address; several of those details appear to describe the separate Drexel Avenue property instead.
What is verifiable is the scale of the lot itself. Nearly three acres in the middle of a dense, historic inner-ring suburb is unusual, and it is part of why the home has carried outsized value relative to its neighbors for years.
| Property Snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Location | Bexley, Ohio (exact address withheld) |
| Living area | Approximately 14,400 square feet |
| Lot size | 2.87 acres |
| Year built | 1912 |
| Exterior | Brick |
| Fireplaces | 3 |
| Reported 2025 sale price | 15 million dollars |
| Reported buyer | Vivek Ramaswamy, via LLC |
Famous Neighbors
The single most notable thing about this stretch of Bexley is what sits just down the street. The Ohio Governor’s Residence and Heritage Garden, built between 1923 and 1925 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, has served as the official home of Ohio’s sitting governor since 1957. That proximity has made the neighborhood a magnet for Central Ohio’s political and business class for generations, and it is part of what gives the Schottenstein property its symbolic weight beyond its square footage.
The Sale That Changed the Story
The most significant recent development is the reported change in ownership. According to Columbus outlet The Rooster, which first reported the deal in late November 2025, Jay Schottenstein sold his Bexley home to businessman and Ohio political figure Vivek Ramaswamy for a reported 15 million dollars, with the purchase structured through a newly filed LLC. Ramaswamy had already been a Columbus-area homeowner, having previously owned a home in the city’s Upper Arlington suburb, and by early 2026 was campaigning for Ohio governor, a detail that adds some irony to a purchase located blocks from the governor’s official residence.
This reporting has not, as of this writing, been independently confirmed by national real estate outlets, so it should be treated as a well-sourced local report rather than an established fact beyond dispute. That said, later coverage from the same outlet in 2026 continued to refer to the Bexley property as Ramaswamy’s, suggesting the ownership change has held up.
If the reporting is accurate, it closes out roughly four decades of Schottenstein ownership on that particular parcel, even as the wider family, through Jonathan Schottenstein’s separate Drexel Avenue home, remains rooted in the same Bexley neighborhood.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Jay Schottenstein still live in his Bexley mansion?
Based on Columbus-area reporting from late 2025, Jay Schottenstein sold his longtime Bexley home to Vivek Ramaswamy. It is not confirmed where Jay currently resides.
How big is the Jay Schottenstein house?
County property records put the home at approximately 14,400 square feet of living space on a 2.87-acre lot, with a main structure dating to 1912.
Who bought Jay Schottenstein’s house?
Reports point to businessman and Ohio political figure Vivek Ramaswamy, in a deal reported at 15 million dollars in late 2025.
Is the Drexel Avenue Schottenstein house the same as Jay’s home?
No. The 291 N. Drexel Ave. property is owned by Jay’s son, Jonathan Schottenstein, and is a separate estate that was also listed for sale in 2025.
How much is Jay Schottenstein worth?
Estimates vary widely by source. The most defensible historical figure is Forbes’ 2015 estimate of 2.7 billion dollars for the broader Schottenstein family, though current individual figures are not reliably confirmed.
A Quiet Fortune, A Very Public Address
The Jay Schottenstein house was never built to draw attention, and for most of its history, it did not get much. What changed was not the house itself but its neighbor down the street and the buyer who reportedly took the keys. Whether or not Jay Schottenstein keeps a lower profile going forward, the Bexley property he called home for nearly 40 years has, almost by accident, become one of the more talked about addresses in Ohio real estate.
If you enjoy discovering the stories behind America’s most remarkable celebrity homes and luxury estates, subscribe to our newsletter. You’ll get the latest property tours, real estate news, exclusive mansion features, and updates on high-profile home sales delivered straight to your inbox—no spam, just carefully researched stories about the places the rich and famous call home.
