Griffin gets biggest tax bill in Palm Beach, late billionaire’s islands hit the market for $30M

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Hedge fund manager Ken Griffin is facing a $5.37 million property tax bill for 2019, the biggest in Palm Beach. Like property owners throughout Florida, Griffin received his bill in November. Griffin is one of nearly 60 property owners on the island who are billed at least $500,000 in property taxes, according to the Palm Beach Daily News. In Palm Beach, taxable values for residential properties rose to $17.32 billion, a 5.37 percent year-over-year increase. [TRD] 

A group of private islands in the Bahamas that hosted President Richard Nixon will hit the market for nearly $30 million. The nine islands were owned by the late billionaire Chris Cline, who died in a helicopter crash in July on his way off the property. Cline’s estate is selling the Bahamian compound, which is made up of 277 acres in the Abaco Islands, the Wall Street Journal reported. [TRD] 

Rent freeze in Berlin ends calls for expropriation, but may spark disinvestment. Deutsche Wohnen CFO Philip Grosse said in an interview with Bloomberg that the firm is holding off on construction in Berlin, and instead will look to other cities to make new investments. The company said earlier this month that limits on raising rents and potential mandated rent cuts put cash flow at risk. [TRD] 

Glenn Straub loses appeal on Palm House sale. Creditors of the Palm Beach condo-hotel project that was once at the center of South Florida’s largest EB-5 fraud case may be one step closer to getting paid. A federal appeals court denied an appeal by Wellington developer Glenn Straub to overturn the sale of the Palm House Hotel, according to the Palm Beach Daily News. [TRD] 

Disgraced casino mogul Steve Wynn to pay $20M to settle shareholder suit. The damages that Wynn will pay, with an additional $21 million from insurance carriers for Wynn Resorts employees, must be approved by a Las Vegas judge, according to the Los Angeles Times. Wynn has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in connection with the allegations of sexual abuse. [TRD]

FEMA aid slow to reach Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands. Of more than 9,000 requests to fund long-term recovery projects in Puerto Rico, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has only funded 190. And in the Virgin Islands, only 218 such projects of more than 1,500 requests have received funding, according to the New York Times. [TRD] 

Millennials in search of more affordable digs are heading west, swapping Brooklyn for Boulder. And institutional investors are taking the hint. Apartment building rental income nearly doubled between 2004 and 2018 in the eight Mountain States, according to a report from Trepp that examined properties in eight states, as cited in the Wall Street Journal. [TRD]

Tiger Woods’ ex-wife Elin Nordegren relisted her North Palm Beach estate for $44.5 million. The former model first listed the 11-bedroom, 18-bathroom mansion last year for $49.5 million, according to the L.A. Times. Nordegren married Woods in 2004 and the couple got divorced in 2010, at which point she received a settlement of $100 million. [LAT]

CVS will demolish a Wellington store after it was deemed an unsafe structure. The pharmacy chain will keep the foundation, submit new permit applications to Wellington, and rebuild the store at 11936 Forest Hill Boulevard, according to the Palm Beach Post. A village building official said there “so many errors in this building” including builder errors, incorrect materials, issues with the roof system and the manufacturer. [Palm Beach Post]

From left: Joseph P. Thomas and Scott Havericak, with 3001 N. Federal Highway (Credit: Google Maps)

The site of a bankrupt hotel in Fort Lauderdale sold for $10 million. Fort Lauderdale investor Michael Daniel bought the 102,000-square-foot property at 3001 North Federal Highway for $98 per square foot. The property is occupied by a vacant, 105-room, 45,432-square-foot former Ramada Inn. [TRD]

Compiled by Katherine Kallergis