“South Florida by the numbers” is a web feature that catalogs the most notable, quirky and surprising real estate statistics.
While Miami’s business and real estate scene can be intensely competitive, it also includes some extraordinarily generous people who give back to the community in ways that are unique, dynamic, and impactful. We applaud recent acts of kindness from some of the region’s biggest power players in this Thanksgiving edition of “South Florida by the numbers.”
$156 million
Amount donated by Citadel CEO Ken Griffin to various South Florida causes since moving the headquarters of his financial empire to Miami from Chicago in 2022. This total includes donations of $50 million to both the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and Baptist Health South Florida; $25 million to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital; and just this month, a $10 million donation to the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM). [MiamiHerald]
$10 million
(Speaking of PAMM founder/Related Group Chairman and CEO Jorge Pérez…) Amount donated by Pérez to the Miami Foundation, through the sale of his penthouse at One Ocean South Beach. This marks the second personal property that Pérez has donated to the Foundation. He and his wife, Darlene, sold their waterfront Coconut Grove estate for $33 million in 2021, and gave the proceeds to the not-for-profit organization. [TheRealDeal]
$122 million
Total sale price for a collection of four La Gorce Island waterfront homes in Miami Beach formerly owned by the late Dr. M. Lee Pearce, with the majority of the amount going to charity. The homes were sold in September, with three lots sold together for $100 million, marking the largest residential sale in Miami-Dade County this year. According to the website of the Dr. M. Lee Pearce Foundation, causes the foundation has supported include the University of Miami, the New World Symphony, Holy Cross Hospital, Harvard Medical School, the Mayo Clinic, the Mariinsky Foundation of America, Tufts University, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Metropolitan Opera. [SFBJ]
$5.6 million
Approximate value of 450 photographs owned by Miami-based real estate mogul and art collector Martin Margulies. The collection was auctioned off this year with the proceeds benefitting his foundation, which supports organizations that improve food security and aid the poor, homeless, marginalized children and veterans. While the organization’s most prominent activities are in the arts, Margulies has been an especially passionate supporter of the Lotus Village Shelter for Women and Children in Miami, a local resource and residential facility. [Observer]
$110 million
Amount donated by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancée Lauren Sanchez to 40 U.S. charities across the country, with $5 million earmarked for the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, the largest gift in the history of the organization. The funds will be used in part to provide stable housing and critical services for those experiencing homelessness. Bezos is a Palmetto High School graduate who recently moved back to Miami, with new homes in Indian Creek Village. [MiamiHerald]
This column is produced by the Master Brokers Forum, a network of South Florida’s elite real estate professionals where membership is by invitation only and based on outstanding production, as well as ethical and professional behavior.