South Florida’s residential market may have slowed in 2022, but trophy mansions remained a hot commodity. From Larry Ellison to Ken Griffin, billionaires kept on buying in South Florida, setting records for single-family home and condo sales across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.
The top 10 deals ranged from a princess’ $45 million sale of her waterfront Palm Beach home to the $173 million trade of a 16-acre compound in Manalapan, a wealthy enclave north of Delray Beach.
Properties in Palm Beach, where inventory remains tight and pricing high, dominated The Real Deal’s ranking, which is based on property records and the Multiple Listing Service. A select few agents also participated in most of the deals, including Lawrence Moens and Christian Angle.
These were the 10 priciest home sales recorded in South Florida this year:
Larry Ellison drops $173M on Manalapan estate
In June, Larry Ellison, the billionaire co-founder of Oracle, paid $173 million for the Manalapan estate at 2000 South Ocean Boulevard, shattering a state record. The seller of the 16-acre compound was another tech billionaire, Netscape co-founder Jim Clark. The enigmatic yet legendary Palm Beach broker Lawrence Moens of Lawrence A. Moens Associates handled both sides of the deal.
It blew past a Florida record for single-family home sales set last year, when Tiger Global Management co-founder Scott Shleifer acquired an oceanfront mansion in Palm Beach for $123 million.
Clark made a hefty profit on the sale to Ellison. He paid $94 million for the property, previously owned by the Ziff publishing family, just a year earlier.
The more than 30-bedroom compound, with 1,200 feet on the Atlantic Ocean and 1,300 feet along Lake Worth, connects via underground tunnels and includes a 12-bedroom main house, two four-bedroom beachside cottages, a seven-bedroom Mango House, a staff house and recreational amenities, including a swimming pool, golf area, tennis court and half-basketball court.
Ken Griffin buys Adrienne Arsht’s waterfront estate for $107M
Adrienne Arsht set two Miami-Dade County records this year: listing her home for $150 million — the priciest-ever in the county — and selling it in September for $106.9 million, the county’s most expensive residential sale ever recorded.
Arsht, a philanthropist and businesswoman, sold her 4-acre waterfront property at 3031 and 3115 Brickell Avenue to hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin. Ashley Cusack of Berkshire Hathaway EWM HomeServices Realty represented Arsht, while Jill Hertzberg of The Jills Zeder Group at Coldwell Banker represented Griffin.
The estate has two homes, including the historic, 109-year-old Villa Serena, once home to former U.S. Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan. Griffin now wants to have the historic home moved off the property.
Oceanfront Palm Beach estate flips for $86M
In June, the oceanfront estate at 901 North Ocean Boulevard in Palm Beach traded for $86 million, a mere nine months after it sold for $64 million. Beechgreen LLC, a Delaware entity linked to DDK & Co. partner Jeffrey Feinman, sold the property to a trust managed by attorney Paul Krasker.
The 18,000-square-foot, five-bedroom mansion sits on 1.1 acres and features a pool, wine cellar, gym, media room and guest house. Lawrence Moens represented the seller. Dana Koch and Paulette Koch of the Corcoran Group represented the buyer.
Ivana Trump’s former Palm Beach mansion sells for $73M
Fashion designer Tomas Maier and his husband, businessman Andrew Preston, sold Ivana Trump’s former Palm Beach home at 102 Jungle Road for $72.9 million in May. Baloobeach, a Delaware LLC, purchased the property. Lawrence Moens of Lawrence A. Moens Associates brokered the off-market sale.
Maier bought the house from Trump, the first wife of former President Donald Trump, in 2014 for $16.6 million.
Apollo-linked entity sells oceanfront Palm Beach mansion for $66M
An oceanfront Palm Beach estate traded in late December for $66 million, nearly double its sale price 18 months earlier.
Sunshine Home 5 LLC, a Delaware company tied to an executive at private equity giant Apollo Global Management, sold the mansion at 6 Via Los Incas to another Delaware corporation, TT 47th LLC, records show. Built in 1981, the 8,500-square-foot home has five bedrooms, eight bathrooms, two half-bathrooms and 125 feet of ocean frontage.
Safariland CEO buys Palm Beach home for $56M
In June, Cadre Holdings and Safariland CEO Warren Kanders, who has been criticized for his company’s sales of tear gas, bought the lakefront home at 325 Via Linda. Kanders, via his Three Palm Trees LLC, paid $56 million for the 7,939-square-foot house.
Trusts linked to the late Marcia and Eugene Applebaum and Eugene Applebaum sold the property. Eugene Applebaum founded Arbor Drugs, a pharmacy chain acquired by CVS in the late 1990s.
Lawrence Moens represented the seller and Christian Angle represented the buyer, according to the Palm Beach Daily News.
Non-waterfront Palm Beach spec home trades for $48.5M
The non-waterfront spec mansion at 1030 South Ocean Boulevard in Palm Beach traded for $48.5 million in April.
Nedim Soylemez and George Taylor sold the eight-bedroom, 10-bathroom estate to a trust. Soylemez and Taylor are co-founders of Lion’s View Holdings, a private investment firm based in Palm Beach. Compass’ Chris Deitz represented the sellers. Christian Angle represented the buyer.
Trust linked to Motorola heirs buys Palm Beach estate for $46M
A trust linked to heirs of the Motorola fortune bought the Palm Beach estate of financier Jeffrey Walker for $46 million in an off-market deal that closed in June.
Walker and his wife, Suzanne, sold their waterfront home at 662 Island Drive to a trust tied to an address used by the Galvin family, heirs of late Motorola founder Paul Galvin.
The roughly half-acre Everglades Island property, with a 9,600-square-foot, six-bedroom mansion, includes 150 feet of waterfront.
Corcoran Group agent Suzanne Frisbie represented the sellers. Christian Angle represented the buyers.
Jordanian princess sells waterfront Palm Beach home for $45M
In March, Jordanian princess Alia Bint Hussein sold her waterfront Palm Beach home for $45.4 million. Bint Hussein, the oldest child of Hussein bin Talal, who reigned as King of Jordan from 1952 to 1999, sold the house at 1330 North Lake Way to a hidden buyer.
The 7,048-square-foot, seven-bedroom home sits on three-quarters of an acre and has 138 feet of water frontage.
Shelly Newman with William Raveis South Florida had the listing, and Chris Leavitt with Douglas Elliman represented the buyer.
Ken Griffin buys Coral Gables estate for $45M
A company managed by Maria Fernanda Vaamonde sold a 19,000-square-foot spec mansion in Gables Estates, a gated community in Coral Gables, to a Delaware entity linked to Ken Griffin for $45.3 million, marking the hedge fund billionaire’s second entry on the list.
The eight-bedroom waterfront mansion, on 2 acres at 650 Casuarina Concourse, includes a 5,000-bottle wine cellar, theater, pool, outdoor kitchen and a sauna. Saddy Abaunza of One Sotheby’s International Realty represented the seller, while Jill Hertzberg of The Jills Zeder Group at Coldwell Banker brought the buyer.