Frequent refinancing has put Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser in a position where he appears to owe more money on his house than it is worth.
In an interview this morning, Funkhouser says that he’s been smart with his personal finances. The debt on the home he and his wife purchased in 1994 is not cause for alarm, he says. “As long I’m making the mortgage payments, you know. I don’t intend to sell it, so I don’t care,” he says.
As was first revealed this week on the blog Tony's Kansas City, Jackson County records indicate that Funkhouser and his wife, Gloria Squitiro, have refinanced their home near Brookside Boulevard on at least a dozen different occasions. The most recent refinancing took place in 2005, when the couple borrowed $445,000 against the home. The county appraiser says the house is worth $293,760.
Asked how he got to a point of appearing to have no equity in his home, the mayor said: “I think I’ve managed my money to achieve the priorities that I’ve had in life. It’s never been my intention to make a lot of money. It’s been my intention to achieve a lot with the money I make.”
Funkhouser says the money that’s been borrowed against the house has been used largely for education. Funkhouser obtained a PhD from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2000. He and Squitiro will have two children attending out-of-state colleges this fall. The couple’s son, Andrew Squitiro, will be a freshman at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. “[T]hat was his first choice, that’s where he wanted to go to school,” Funkhouser says. “And, by God, somehow his old man is going to find the money for him to go to school there.”
Beyond tuition, Funkhouser would not elaborate on how his family spends its money.
“I have a responsibility to tell people where I get my money. I don’t have a responsibility to tell then how I spend it,” he says.
The mortgage documents seem to be at odds with Funkhouser’s work as a crusading city auditor. As a public servant and as a candidate for mayor, Funkouser routinely criticized city agencies and departments for making unwise and uninformed decisions. But he dismisses a suggestion that he’s someone who has preached financial austerity.
“What I believe is that I’m someone who preaches being smart with the money,” the mayor says. “I’m telling you, I think in my private life, I’ve been smart with the money. I’ve achieved quite a bit with what I’ve got.
“But there isn’t any legitimate comparison, really, between how you spend money in your private life and how you spend money in your public life. In my private life, I’m responsible only to my family. In my public life, when I’m spending the public’s money, I’m responsible to the world. I would take significantly greater risks with my own money than I would take with your money.”
Funkhouser also rejects the notion that he’s a risk-averse bean counter. He points to the time in his early 20s when he quit a job in social work in to earn a master’s degree. Last year, he walked away from a six-figure salary to enter a crowded field of candidates running for mayor.
Funkhouser says he’s comfortable with the choices he’s made.
“I second-guess every decision I make 40 times,” he says. “I am constantly critiquing myself, my behavior in my own head and analyzing what I’m doing, whether it makes sense. On the whole, I’m comfortable. I mean, hindsight’s always 20/20.
“On the things that really matter in life, I’ve got a solid marriage. I’ve got two wonderful children who are almost grown. I’ve achieved a lot. I have a reputation in the world of public administration and auditing that’s one of the best in the world. I have lots of education. My children are going to have a good education. I’ve managed to become mayor of one of the largest cities in America in a circumstance that no one but me would have predicted that I would have become mayor.” – David Martin
Showing 1-8 of 8
hii
I followed the previous two mayors where the municipality funds was unsealed to Immunity Inc for 8 age then to anybody that titled themselves a Advocator and was a lawyer or developer.........
............
hedden
........................
Loans for Mortgages
Mortgage debt happens when you are not in a position to pay your mortgage. You need to calculate your mortgage properly to avoid any such condition.
Smart Equity - mortgage Payoff, ask mortgage, live mortgage free, mortgage debt
I like this post and I was interested in what the Mayor had to say.
I don't agree with all of the Mayor's reasoning about the importance of the subject and his spending seems relevant given that his staff pulls down quite a bit more than the Barnes crew did (which the Pitch reported previously) but all things considered the more KC knows about their public officals, the better in terms of stuff that's public record.
1) The Pitch has to go to Tony's Kansas City self-proclaimed "joke blog" for their news stories now? How sad. What's next, pictures of scantily clad women? Wait, you already do that.
2) Last I checked, the position of mayor paid in the six figures, so the sentence stating Funk left a six-figure job to run for mayor is a little odd, isn't it? He essentially left a six-fig position for another one. Big deal.
3) It's his business how he manages his personal income. Go pick on someone else from the Star, as you're wont to do, Pitch.
It would be refreshing if Pitch reporters would stay out of people's private business and stop robbing citizens of a valuable resource--the Mayor's time invested in improvement of city services and quality of life in Kansas City.
I find it amazing people are questiong mark Funkhousers commimment to fiscal policy. I followed the previous two mayors where the city treasury was opened to Freedom Inc for 8 years then to anybody that called themselves a Democrat and was a lawyer or developer. Thank God the insanity is over
like
dislike
