Edwin Castro, a resident of Altadena, California, won the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, a $2.04 billion Powerball prize, on November 7, 2022. He claimed the prize on Valentine's Day 2023 but declined to appear on camera. Castro has since purchased several multimillion-dollar homes in California, including a beachfront property in Malibu, and has shared his 10-year real estate plan.
Who is Edwin Castro? On Nov. 7 2022 the Altadena California resident set a record becoming the largest lottery jackpot winner in U.S. history with his 2.04 billion Powerball prize. Castro publicly claimed his prize almost three months later on the most romantic holiday of the year. Though he was at California Lottery headquarters on Feb. 14 2023 or Valentines Day 2023 he declined to appear on camera or pose for photos. In the time since his epic lottery win Castro became an overnight millionaire and an instant quasi-celebrity. News organizations reported about Castros lottery winnings and how he spent his prize money. That includes multimillion-dollar estates in California and vintage cars and most recently a chunk of property in the Golden State. Castro told the Wall Street Journal in an Oct. 12 2025 story that he paid 10 million for 15 lots in his hometown of Altadena after this years devastating California wildfires. The lottery winner shared his 10-year real estate plan with the Wall Street Journal and the vision behind it. The Powerball winner lost one of his multimillion-dollar homes to the California wildfires in January 2025. After he claimed his lump sum in 2023 Castro had purchased a beachfront home in Malibu for 3.8 million as well as two other homes in California. Satellite images of the Palisades wildfire showed Castro's Malibu home was completely destroyed. Here's what we know about Edwin Castro winner of the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history his homes in California and how he spent part of the Powerball prize money. Edwin Castro of Altadena California sole winner of the 2.04 billion Powerball drawing on Nov. 7 2022 opted for the lump sum which was just shy of 1 billion according to the California Lottery. Castro bought the ticket that matched all five numbers plus the Powerball from Joe's Service Center in Altadena California. Declining to appear on camera Castro claimed his prize on Feb. 14 2023 Valentine's Day and received a check from the California Lottery for 997.6 million. In California it is public record to know who won a Powerball Mega Millions or California Lottery jackpot and where the winning ticket was sold. Rules vary in other states such as Florida where it is public record to know who won a lottery jackpot though winners in that state can claim their grand prize through a trust or LLC. In October 2025 the Wall Street Journal reported Castro walked away with 768 million. After his epic 2.04 billion Powerball lottery win Edwin Castro splurged for himself and his parents. After November 2022 news reports show Castro bought two multimillion-dollar homes in his home state of California weeks after he publicly claimed his prize from the California Lottery. On March 1 2023 Castro bought a 25.5 million estate in Hollywood Hills California. According to USA TODAY the 13 500-square-foot mansion sometimes referred to as Palazzo di Vista sits on a 0.58-acre lot and features five bedrooms seven bathrooms game room wine cellar movie theater bar spa and fitness studio. The main room is on the third floor and has its own balcony. Other amenities include a garage big enough to park seven cars. Most of the house which sports an outdoor infinity pool and fireplace is made up of glass walls. Then on March 9 2023 according to the New York Post Castro purchased a second home in Altadena a 4 million mansion with views of the San Gabriel Mountains. Features of the 1953 Japanese-style home include a pool movie theater five bedrooms and four bathrooms the New York Post reported. Castro was reportedly living in a one-bedroom home when he won the Powerball. The New York Post said Castro also bought a vintage white Porsche for 250 000. According to the L.A. Times Castro purchased a 3.85 million beachfront home in Malibu California in September 2023. It was a two-bedroom home with ocean views just off the Pacific Coast Highway. The L.A. Times said in a Jan. 13 2025 story that Castro purchased the home using an LLC whose listed business managers in public records were the same two men as those listed for LLCs used to buy the other two properties. Terry Fahn with Sitrick and Co. a California firm claiming to represent Castro told the USA TODAY Network in October 2024 that Castro owned the home in Hollywood Hills and the home in Altadena. A check on California property tax records does not list Castro as the owner of any of the houses that were tied to his name but property tax records cite privacy restriction. The Malibu home was one of the many casualties from the Palisades California wildfire that burned almost 24 000 acres in January 2025 according to CAL FIRE the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The CAL FIRE site provides containment updates incident maps maps searchable by address and satellite imagery. At the time the CAL FIRE the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection showed Castro's homes in California were under evacuation orders from the Palisades and Eaton wildfires. However the Hollywood Hills and Altadena homes did not sustain major damage from the fires. According to USA TODAY Joes Service Center was spared from damage and destruction in the California wildfires. Almost three years ago the world learned that Edwin Castro became an overnight (almost) billionaire. Though he would win a life-changing lottery in November 2022 it wasnt until Feb. 14 2023 aka Valentines Day that the news became public. As of Dec. 8 2025 three years after the record-setting Powerball drawing Castro still holds the record for winning the biggest jackpot in U.S. history a whopping 2.04 billion prize. The Altadena California resident became an overnight multimillionaire but he missed the title of billionaire by less than 3 million. His lottery ticket matched all five numbers plus the Powerball in the Nov. 7 2022 record drawing for what was then a 1.9 billion prize. Final ticket sales pushed the grand total to 2.04 billion. In addition to his luxury splurges news reports say Castro has a round-the-clock security team. Since the historic lottery win Joe's Service Center in California has had a taste of celebrity too. News reports show people have touched a Joe's Service Center window sign for good luck. In addition to the grand prize 22 tickets worth 1 million matched all five numbers except the Powerball in 16 states Powerball officials said. Contributing Doc Louallen N'dea Yancey-Bragg Orlando Mayorquin Mike Snider Thao Nguyen Claire Thornton Jordan Mendoza USA TODAY; Nate Chute USA TODAY Network Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network. 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