Equestrian bigwigs pay $27M for sprawling Wellington ranch

Melissa and Marc Ganzi, once considered the “royal couple of polo,” just dropped $27.29 million for an expansive 100-acre equestrian estate in Wellington.

Palm Beach County records show the two, through their company Blonde Farm LLC, purchased the Zacara Farm at the southeastern corner of South 50th Street and 130th Avenue.

The deal covers 100 acres of prime land in the town, including five barns with 120 horse stalls, housing for 24 staff members, two playing fields, and a guest house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Of that land, 31 acres are undeveloped.

Equestrian life is nothing new to the Ganzis: they were dubbed the “royal couple of polo” by the Palm Beach Post in 2012 for their ownership of two separate polo teams, as well as Wellington’s Grand Champions Polo Club.

Melissa Ganzi is the heiress to late auto magnate Victor Potamkin, and her husband Marc made a fortune from leading cellular infrastructure companies like Global Tower Partners, whose parent company was acquired by rival American Tower Corp. for a reported $3.3 billion.

For their latest Wellington purchase, the couple got a discount of just under $5 million for the Zacara Farm’s $32 million ask. The deal breaks down to about $272,900 per acre and was financed with a $19 million loan from the Northern Trust Company.

County records show the seller is a limited liability company named after the farm, which lists its managing member as Phyllis Noble, a realtor based out of Berkshire Hathaway’s Montecito, California, office.

Wellington equestrian land has been a hot commodity this year, with both high-net-worth players and developers snapping up properties. One of the most notable deals was Microsoft founder Bill Gates assembling an entire street to form one massive private residence for $38 million.