Testaverde calls time-out after listing his mansion, then puts it back in play

The retired NFL player and former University of Miami star re-listed his 12,700-square-foot home near Tampa after taking it off the market and renovating it

Vinny Testaverde and his home near Tampa (Credit: Alexander Tamargo | Mansion Global, Getty Images)
Vinny Testaverde and his home near Tampa (Credit: Alexander Tamargo | Mansion Global, Getty Images)

Retired professional football player and former University of Miami star Vinny Testaverde called time-out after listing his lakefront house near Tampa last year for $4.999 million.

Testaverde and his wife, Mitzi, took their house off the market in April, spent about $1 million on a thorough renovation of the house’s lower level, and relisted the property with the same asking price, according to Evan Pedone, an agent of brokerage firm Engel & Völkers Madeira Beach.

Pedone, the new listing agent, also told Mansion Global that the Testaverdes want a smaller home because they raised their three children at the house near Tampa, and two of them have moved out.

The three-story, 12,700-square-foot mansion comes with a dock, a tennis court and a basketball court, among other amenities.

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The interior features include a wine cellar, game room and dance studio, plus built-in technology that repels mosquitos.

The residence also has a large gym and a golf simulator on the second floor of the guest house.

Testaverde, 54, paid a developer $4.5 million to build the house in the exclusive Dolce Vita gated community in 2007, the year he retired as a National Football League player.

Testaverde rose to national prominence as quarterback of the University of Miami football team and won college football’s highest honor, the Heisman Trophy, in 1986. [Mansion Global]Mike Seemuth