NYers Gobble Up Multi-Million $$$ Homes as Palm Beach Sees Post –Pandemic Buying Spree

By Hadassa Kalatizadeh

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, one market that has enjoyed a momentous pick up is the residential real estate in Palm Beach, Florida.  As reported by the Wall Street Journal, since March 2020, the 16-mile island in South Florida has seen over 22 home sales for $40 million or more each in Palm Beach.  There were two sales over $100 million and about 35 homes sold for more than $30 million in the town, as per property data compiled by the Corcoran Group and Miller Samuel.  In February, the largest deal in Palm Beach for the year so far was inked for $122.7 million.

The contemporary 2.25-acre oceanfront mansion was purchased by Scott Shleifer, a private-equity executive and a partner at Tiger Global Management.  The seller, Mark Pulte, is a local developer who had purchased the land in 2017 for $37 million and built the sprawling 13,330 square foot estate. As per the WSJ, the nine-bedroom house was built on a site which had once been owned by former President Donald Trump.  The home had only been on the market for a few weeks.

Palm Beach, in Florida’s Atlantic coast, boasts some 2,500 homes, and has already attracted famous buyers including software billionaire Larry Ellison, casino mogul Steve Wynn, fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger and financial executive Charles R. Schwab.    During the second quarter of 2021, the number of luxury sales jumped 177 percent in comparison with the same quarter last year, as per Miller Samuel. The median sale price is $17.75 million, up an astounding 97 percent from the previous quarter, marking the highest median since Miller Samuel began tracking in 2011.

In mid-June, a home in Palm Beach was sold for $109.6 million.  The house, at 1840 South Ocean Trust, was listed for about three months, with an asking price of $115 million.  The home boasts 15,950 square feet on 2.66 acres.  In July, another home was sold for $85 million.  The private-island property had last sold in 1998 for just $7.6 million.  The new buyer has plans to completely renovate and expand the main house and add pools, and a tennis pavilion.

As per the WSJ, a home at 1341 South Ocean Boulevard was sold for $95 million in May.  The 2 acre home had been on and off the market since 2017, and had previously sold for $17.7 million in 2001.  In March, another home that was sitting on the market since 2015 sold for $94.2 million.  The roughly 16-acre waterfront property had been previous owned by the Ziff publishing family.