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Warhol muse Baby Jane’s son sells oceanfront Palm Beach house for $25M
SEC filed insider trading charges against the seller, Charles “Rusty” Holzer, in September
The son of one of Andy Warhol’s favorite muses sold his oceanfront Palm Beach house for $25 million, months after the Securities and Exchange Commission slapped him with insider trading charges.
Records show 195 Phesten Associates Palm Beach LLC, managed by Charles Rustin Holzer, sold the house at 977 South Ocean Boulevard to an LLC named for the address, managed by local attorney Maura Ziska. The true buyer is unknown.
Holzer, who goes by Rusty, is the son of longtime Palm Beacher Jane Holzer. “Baby Jane” Holzer was a lifelong friend and muse of the late Warhol, and is one of the women featured in his iconic silkscreen series. She is an art collector, Worth Avenue landlord and controls a multimillion-dollar portfolio across Palm Beach County. Rusty Holzer’s father was the late Leonard Holzer, a real estate heir.
Rusty Holzer and his wife, Ashley Holzer, are both accomplished equestrians. Rusty Holzer competed in the 1992 Olympics, where he represented the U.S. Virgin Islands. Ashley Holzer won the bronze medal for Canada in dressage at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Rusty Holzer is principal and chairman of Worth Capital, his family’s real estate company. Worth Capital dropped $16 million on a Wellington shopping center in May. In September, the SEC filed insider trading charges against Rusty Holzer, barred him from serving as an officer or director of a public issuer and ordered he pay a yet-to-be-determined fine, according to a press release.
The Holzers bought a teardown on the 0.5-acre South Ocean Boulevard property for $7.8 million in 2018, records show. They later tore down the house. The Palm Beach Town Council rejected Rusty and Ashley Holzer’s initial plans for a new house on the property, the Palm Beach Daily News reported. Their billionaire neighbor Bill Koch criticized initial designs, according to the outlet.
In September 2020, the couple received approval to build a new, 3,600-square-foot home with five bedrooms. Records show the Holzers kicked off construction in September 2021, and dismissed their contractors earlier this month.
The new house is directly across the street from 980 South Ocean Boulevard, where Baby Jane Holzer is building a two-story, 10,800-square-foot mansion after receiving approval for the designs in September.
Brokers say new construction is performing particularly well, as the South Florida luxury market comes down from its pandemic high. While sales volume has slowed, prices have held strong.
Last month, Rush Limbaugh’s widow sold an oceanfront Palm Beach compound to beauty mogul and heir William Lauder for $155 million, marking the second highest residential price in Florida history. A British private equity founder bought a waterfront Palm Beach home for $15 million in February. A real estate investor sold his ocean-facing house for $34.9 million in January.