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A house to die for: Life insurance CFO buys Lighthouse Point mansion

The 17K sf mansion on 1.6 acres is across the Intracoastal Waterway from Hillsboro Mile

3100 NE 46th St., Lighthouse Point (Realtor)
3100 NE 46th St., Lighthouse Point (Realtor)

UPDATED, Aug. 6, 5:30 p.m.: The CFO of one of the largest health and life insurance agencies in the country bought a Lighthouse Point mansion from a hospitality executive tied to controversial resorts owner Daniel Lambert.

Lighthouse Point Newport Property, managed by Insurance Care Direct CFO Edward Carriero, paid $6.4 million for the mansion at 3100 Northeast 46th Street, records show.

The 16,693-square-foot mansion sits on 1.63 acres across the Intracoastal Waterway from Hillsboro Mile. Built in 1989, the home has eight bedrooms, a Jacuzzi and pool, according to the listing. It also sports 465 feet of deep water frontage, a volleyball court, a basketball and tennis court, a pavilion with a summer kitchen, a pool house studio and indoor and outdoor exercise rooms. The property includes a detached one-bedroom guest apartment and a six-car garage.

The house was originally listed for $13 million in 2016, and had been on and off the market since then, most recently asking $7.5 million in January, according to Realtor.com.

Cori O’Brien of Global Luxury Realty represented the seller. Senada Adzem of Douglas Elliman represented the buyer, according to the listing.

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The sellers, James H. and Teresa M. Verrillo, paid $3.6 million for the home in 1999. It was the most expensive home sale in Lighthouse Point at the time, according to the Sun Sentinel.

Insurance Care Direct, founded in 2001 and based in Deerfield Beach, has 70-plus enrollment centers, 500-plus agents and is active in 37 states, according to its website. The insurance is politically connected, with an advisory board that includes former governors of Oklahoma and Nebraska, the former CFO for the state of Florida, the former chairman of Florida’s Republican Party, and Barry Goldwater Jr., a former U.S. congressman and son of the 1964 presidential candidate of the same name.

Verrillo is associated with David Lambert, who owns resorts in South Florida and Orlando and co-founded American Top Team, a mixed-martial arts team.

Verrillo and Lambert have become familiar to state and federal regulators over the years. In 1999, Verrillo, Lambert and Verrillo’s father settled an U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission insider trading case for almost $300,000. The case involved the securities of Vacation Break U.S.A., a former Ft. Lauderdale company in the time-share business. In the 2000s, Verrillo and Lambert were part of a $1.5 million settlement. They were sued by 17 states and the District of Columbia, which accused the men of running scams where travelers were allegedly promised free trips but instead were charged exorbitant hidden fees, according to reports from the time. Last year, the men were named in a class action lawsuit alleging millions of robocalls placed from a call center in India to offer consumers free cruises.

Lambert’s ex-wife put her waterfront Fort Lauderdale estate for sale in 2016, asking $13.8 million.

A Hillsboro Mile home across the water from Verrillo’s former mansion sold in July for $18 million.