Rich people, it turns out, are just as vulnerable as poor folks to foreclosure.

New York Post celebrity real estate columnist Braden Keil today reported that Veronica Hearst, the widow and third wife of Randolph “Randy” A. Hearst, is fighting foreclosure proceedings on her 5.1 acre oceanfront estate in Manalapan, just south of Palm Beach, Fla.

The couple paid for $29.9 million for the estate, located on South Ocean Blvd., in 2000 from shopping-mall magnate and Indiana Pacer co-owner Melvin Simon, and his wife, Democratic Party fund-raiser Bren, who had paid $6 million for it in 1986. A few months later, Mr. Hearst suffered a fatal stroke at age 85.

In December 2004, Ms. Hearst sold a 1.6 acre parcel of the property to RGF Holding Corp. for $6,225,000, according to The Wall Street Journal.

In March 2007, the Hearst mansion — known locally as the Villa Venezio — was put on the market by the Corcoran Group for $27 million. The luxurious 12-bedroom stone mansion has all the comforts that socialites like the Hearts demand. The Romanesque-style estate is a legend in the Palm Beach area. It was designed by acclaimed architect Maurice Fatio in 1930 for Harold Sterling Vanderbilt, a great grandson of railroad baron Cornelius Vanderbilt.

One of the Posts’ sources told Keil that: “When Randy died, he didn’t leave her enough money to take care of the house. It’s all tied up in trusts — and she’s a big spender.”

Another blogger at Real Estalker said: “Now children, what Your Mama wants to know is what foolishness possessed an 85 year old man, even one as rich as the Pope and married to a much younger socialite hottie, to buy a damn $30,000,000 mansion? Honestly, that was just stupid, all due respect.”

And Radar said: “Even the super rich sometimes struggle to sell their palaces, and it looks like Fabiola Beracasa’s mom, Veronica Hearst, is one of them.”

Now you can own an exclusive and coveted piece of oceanfront property for a mere $27 million. At RealtyTrac, we want to know what you think about celebrity foreclosures.