White House replica home up for sale

ATLANTA, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- An Atlanta resident says the struggling U.S. economy has forced him to place his home, a scaled-down replica of the White House, up for sale.

Iranian-American home developer Fred Milani said he is selling the 16,500 square-foot replica home in Atlanta for $9.88 million as the ongoing economic crisis has him facing hard financial times, The New York Times said Thursday.

"I still do not want to sell," Milani said. "But I will."

Milani, 57, said building the replica of the U.S. president's home was not initially his idea.

"Really, I am not very political," Milani said. "The architect just asked, 'How about I build you the White House?' and I said yes. That is the whole story."

Atlanta City Council member Mary Norwood said Milani's reluctant sale of the unique property appears to be part of a growing foreclosure and real estate crisis in the Georgian city.

"The housing crisis has affected people at all income levels," Norwood told the Times. "This has been devastating to the whole economy."