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Ad Falsely Claims AOC Owns One of World's Most Expensive Houses

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Published June 2, 2021

US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) takes a selfie with a voter near a polling station during the New York primaries Election Day on June 23, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Johannes EISELE / AFP) (Photo by JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images) (JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images)
Image Via JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images

Since at least May 2021, an online advertisement claimed that claimed New York U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) owned one of the world's most expensive houses. The ad was paid for by an unknown party, hosted on the Outbrain advertising network, and likely displayed across a large number of websites.

Such real estate news would be surprising considering the fact that the Democratic U.S. Congresswoman first entered public office in 2019. Prior to her campaign, she was a waitress and bartender.

The exact text of the ad claimed: "[Pics] Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Owns One Of The World's Most Expensive Houses."

AOC whose full name is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez does not own one of the world's most expensive houses.
Not even close.

The ad led to a 158-page article on the LifeExact website. AOC's purported house finally appeared on page 156.

However, the article only said that she previously owned a $355,000 home in Westchester County, New York.

AOC whose full name is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez does not own one of the world's most expensive houses.
Not exactly one of the world's most expensive houses.

According to ABC 10, "Westchester County land records showed that Ocasio-Cortez was living there with her mother and brother in 2016." The home sold that year for $355,000.

We were unable to verify if the home pictured in the lengthy article was the same house. However, the fact remains that the ad falsely claimed that Ocasio-Cortez "owns one of the world's most expensive houses."

According to a 2019 article from The Independent, Ocasio-Cortez resided at an apartment building in the Navy Yard neighborhood in Washington, D.C.

Snopes debunks a wide range of content, and online advertisements are no exception. Misleading ads often lead to obscure websites that host lengthy slideshow articles with lots of pages. It's called advertising "arbitrage." The advertiser's goal is to make more money on ads displayed on the slideshow's pages than it cost to show the initial ad that lured them to it. Feel free to submit ads to us, and be sure to include a screenshot of the ad and the link to where the ad leads.

Jordan Liles is a Senior Reporter who has been with Snopes since 2016.