Van Waveren estate in Palm Beach sells for $18M

The family of the late, long-time Palm Beach resident Jean van Waveren just sold her landmarked beachfront mansion for $17.6 million.

Located at 101 El Brillo Way, the Mediterranean Revival home was first built in 1926 on a single acre overlooking the ocean. It’s been owned for the last 33 years by a trust in the name of Jean van Waveren, a Michigan transplant and daughter of Raymond Herrick — founder of engine manufacturing giant Tecumseh Products.

An aerial view of the Van Waveren estate

In 1983, she paid $1.7 million for the 8,359-square-foot home, which features manicured grounds and a half-circle motor court. That price equates to about $203 per square foot.

“I’ve kept everything, and I`ll keep this until the day I die,” Waveren said of her elegant estate in a 1985 Sun Sentinel article. She also owned homes in Greenwich, Connecticut — a residential enclave that’s popular among the affluent — and in New York. 

Van Waveren passed away in October at the age of 90, according to her obituary. Her children, as successors of the trust, closed on off-market sale of the property in late December.

The buyer is the Palm Trust, which is managed by West Palm Beach lawyer Maura A. Ziska. She specializes in both planning wills and helping high-net-worth clients purchase residential real estate.

This most recent sale breaks down to $2,105 per square foot — an appreciation of more than 10 times from the last purchase price.

Liza Pulitzer of Brown Harris Stevens brokered both sides of the deal, the Palm Beach Daily News reported.