Soccer superstar Neymar is the latest player to put down roots in South Florida.
The Brazilian footballer, whose name is Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, paid $26 million for a waterfront residential plot in Bal Harbour, where he plans to build a home, sources confirmed to The Real Deal. The Wall Street Journal first reported the purchase.
Property records show a company led by Bent Philipson sold the 0.6-acre lot at 148 Bal Bay Drive. Philipson, a controversial investor in elder care facilities, founded the nursing home consulting firm called Philosophy Care. He and his wife paid $9.3 million for the property in 2020, which at the time included a home. The house has since been demolished.
Neymar plays for the Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and Brazil’s national team. Saudi journalist Tariq Al Nofal reported that Neymar’s contract with Al Hilal will be sold to Inter Miami.
The Bal Harbour property has about 150 feet of water frontage, according to the listing. It was on the market with Douglas Elliman agents Ruthie and Ethan Assouline of the Assouline Team for $28.5 million. The sale closed last week, according to the buyer’s agent, Bento Queiroz of Compass. Queiroz declined to comment on the buyer’s identity. The Assoulines also declined to comment.
The property, in a guard-gated community, comes with approved plans for a 13,000-square-foot mansion, according to the listing. Queiroz said his client was looking for a waterfront, oversized lot in a private neighborhood.
Recent sales in Bal Harbour include David Arison’s $23 million purchase of a waterfront home.
If he joins Inter Miami, Neymar will be playing with his former Barcelona teammates, Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, and Luis Suárez. In March, Suárez paid $11.5 million for a waterfront house in Fort Lauderdale’s gated Bay Colony neighborhood, near Messi. Messi bought his Bay Colony home in September of last year for $10.8 million.
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Even Inter Miami’s owners have been buying and selling homes as of late. David Beckham, a co-owner of the MLS franchise, and his wife Victoria Beckham recently paid $72 million for a waterfront spec mansion on North Bay Road in Miami Beach.
Beckham and his Inter Miami partners, led by MasTec Chairman Jorge Mas, plan to develop a major mixed-use soccer complex on the former Melreese golf course site near Miami International Airport. Inter Miami currently plays at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.