Megachurch pastor Steven Furtick building North Carolina megamansion

The pastor of a North Carolina megachurch is building a megamansion on a 19-acre wooded lot.

Steven Furtick, who’s turned Elevation Church into one of the fastest-growing congregations in the U.S., is planning a 16,000-square-foot gated estate in Waxhaw, although a church spokesman said the figure is misleading.

Elevation’s chief financial pointed out that only 8,400 square feet of the home will be heated, while the remaining roughly 7,600 square feet will be basement, attic, garage and porch space.

The Charlotte Observer reported the 33-year-old Furtick paid $325,000 for the property, according to tax records, although its value is $1.6 million.

Chunks Corbett, the church’s chief financial officer, said the pastor will pay for construction of the five-bedroom house with income from books he’s written or will write.

"He has aligned himself and appeared alongside people who are called 'gospel of prosperity preachers,' however he has not made a conspicuous purchase until now," said Stuart Wilson of NBC Charlotte.

Corbett said the home was not a parsonage or a gift from the church.

Furtick dismissed the estate in a recent sermon as “not that great of a house,” but it would be among the largest in the Charlotte area when it’s completed.

He listed a trust, not his name, on the deed and tax records, which make the property difficult to find in public records.

Corbett said that’s for the security and privacy of Furtick, his wife and their three young children.

Elevation Church has grown to nearly 12,000 racially diverse worshipers drawn by Christian rock music and other multimedia features.

[Image via Wikipedia Commons]