Boston wealth manager picks up Venetian Islands home and lot for $13M

A 26-year-old portfolio manager picked up a Venetian Islands vacant lot and house with interiors and exteriors inspired by the Versace Mansion for a combined $13 million.

Joshua Patkin, a portfolio manager from Boston, specializing in mining commodities such as gold and silver, bought the five-bedroom waterfront home at 921 North Venetian Drive and the vacant lot next door at 911 North Venetian Drive, records show. Patkin took out a loan from UBS Bank USA for $8.9 million, the purchase price for the house.

“Following suit with the national migration south, I wanted to take advantage of tax incentives and of course, the nicer weather,” Patkin said in a statement. “The house and the lot caught my attention as one of the best value plays in the area.”

The seller is the estate of Kenneth Alan Hill Sr., a Fort Worth, Texas-native who founded several pharmacy software and healthcare companies, most recently EHR Data, a firm that makes applications to access patient records. Hill died on Nov. 23, 2020.

Allan Kleer and Fabian Garcia-Diaz with One Sotheby’s International Realty had the listing. Michael Kuritnik with Compass represented Patkin.

The two-story, 3,605-square-foot house sits on a 0.6-acre lot with 175 feet of waterfront, according to a press release. It was built in 1948.

Kleer said it took Hill eight years to complete renovations to the house after buying it for $3.7 million in 2009. Four years later, Hill bought the 11,250-square-foot vacant lot for $2.8 million.

“He spent over $6 million on the finishes, which are inspired by Gianni Versace’s former estate [Casa Casuarina] on Ocean Drive,” Kleer said. “A tremendous amount of onyx and marble is in the home, including marble terraces.”

Hill hired Italian designer Lorenzo Carmellini, who designed Versace boutiques and the first Versace Hotel Palazzo in Australia, to carry out his vision. Carmellini created mosaic and pebble designs that run from the street to the water, marble columns, balustrades and fountains for the Venetian Islands home.

The house also features an oversized mosaic swimming pool, Kleer said.

However, Kleer said the buyer will likely tear down the house and combine the lots to build a bigger residence.

Venetian Islands sales have been heating up in recent weeks. “Full House” sitcom creator and producer Jeff Franklin paid $13 million this month for a piece of land at 1236 South Venetian Way that is next to another lot at 1230 South Venetian Way that he bought for $35.5 million in June. The purchases give Franklin 1.2 acres on San Marco Island.

Roshan Wijerama, owner and chairman of Horizon Group USA, a Warren, New Jersey-based national supplier of childrens’ craft components and activity kits, bought a waterfront property at 27 East Dilido Drive in July for $18.5 million.