Miami’s billionaire boom is showing no signs of slowing.
As wealthy Californians and New Yorkers head to the Sunshine State in search of tropical breezes and friendly tax regimes, Manny Angelo Varas, president and CEO of Florida-based MV Group, is making sure these newcomers have a place to call home. When we last spoke with Varas, he told us about MV Group’s design process and ability to elevate home values for South Florida clients; this time, Varas gave us the inside scoop on migration trends and how his firm is delivering for these ultra-high-net-worth newcomers from Palm Beach to Ocean Reef and everywhere in between.
Money on the move
California’s proposed 5 percent wealth tax on fortunes above $1 billion has the Golden State’s tech moguls looking at Florida.
Varas’s years of experience working with high-end clientele have made him perfectly poised for this moment; in fact, he was among the first to cater to billionaire clients, notably as builder of a Journey’s End home later purchased by the Bezos family. His project at 9 Indian Creek is located in the same neighborhood where the Zuckerbergs just put down roots.
“I would say there’s been a trillion dollars transferred from California in the first two months of this wave,” says Varas, “and there are over a dozen billionaires that we’re already in communication with—outside of the ones that have been publicly published—who are looking at relocating.”
California isn’t the only state with potential tax changes on the horizon.
Varas says that the possibility of reducing or eliminating property taxes in Florida, an issue on the ballot this November, is top of mind for many of his clients. If voters approve the change, Varas sees a surge in property values on the horizon, and he’s seen clients invest in adjacent lots to take advantage should it come to pass.
“We probably have a dozen clients that have purchased the lots next door and just placed a soccer field or a tennis court on a $10 or $20 million lot,” he says. “We have a lot of pre-planning happening of expansions of their existing homes, or creating legacy properties on multiple lot assemblages, with the idea of a potential reduction or abolishment of property taxes in November. It’s safer than a lot of other investments.”
New clientele bring new demands
Varas has adjusted his homes’ designs to accommodate this wave of newcomers. For example, many of the billionaires coming from Silicon Valley need to maintain a link with the West Coast.
“We’ve seen a movement with technology to be able to have communication,” explains Varas. “They’re able to have spaces that have connectivity with their teams that are still in California.”
These clients also want to bring a bit of the California aesthetic to Florida, emphasizing indoor-outdoor living and incorporating landscaping inside the home.
“We’ve seen trees within a lot of the homes we’re doing that are sculptural art pieces,” says Varas. “We’re doing a lot of indoor-outdoor AC components in order to have humidity control and that indoor-outdoor living that you typically would have in California coming into South Florida.”
The custom approach
MV Group brings together an architectural team, engineers, civil engineers and interior designers for the project that best fits the client’s design aesthetic. Varas and his team have earned a reputation around the country and world as the premier custom home builder in South Florida, often serving as the first point of contact for interior designers and architects with clients looking to build in the area.
At 360 S Hibiscus, a recently completed MV Group project now listed at $46 million, the client wanted the highest level of design and product. Varas brought award-winning London interior design firm Argent on board, and the team incorporated striking materials and high-tech components, including brass inlays, exquisite stone and invisible speakers.
The client’s passions and interests are at the forefront of each design. For 360 S Hibiscus, the owner’s passion for art was incorporated throughout, including a Da Vinci flying machine that was installed in the foyer.
Changing tastes: private wellness, multigenerational compounds
In addition to bicoastal communication hubs, Varas noted a couple other trends among his newly-relocated clientele.
Whereas ten years ago, wine cellars and bars were a must-have, lately wellness facilities have become the ultimate amenity.
“We have a one house in Gable Estates where the bar/entertainment room currently is being completely changed into a gym/wellness area,” says Varas. “We’ve started putting in as almost a standard feature saunas, steam rooms, cold plunges and red light therapy.”
Additionally, billionaire clients are showing a desire to create legacy compounds where multiple generations can live.
“As opposed to having many bedrooms in the main residence, we’re effectively seeing a pod design where you have both corners of the house created for entire families so the owners’ kids and grandkids can be there,” says Varas. “A lot of the billionaires coming to Miami are making this their legacy property, and they want their whole family to unite here and enjoy the beaches and the amenities.”
At 355 South Ocean Boulevard, the largest oceanfront home in Miami-Dade County, MV Group is transforming a 1990s home originally built for a family of four into a legacy compound offered at $125 million. Varas and his team have devised an estate that balances togetherness and independence.
“You have the patriarchs of the home as the primary [occupants], and then we’re having full houses on both sides of this compound, which will house a family of four or five,” says Varas.
“We effectively have a design for three families to be able to totally reside separately, but be able to be together as necessary.”
For more information on MV Group, follow @mannyavaras on Instagram and visit mvgroupusa.com.