Highland Beach oceanfront mansion with 12 bathrooms sells for $30M
Developer says luxury market has little inventory and people are “still coming here.” Florida gained 738,000 new residents between July 2021 and July 2022.
A newly built oceanfront home of sparkling glass and straight lines was under contract in less than a week after its debut in Highland Beach, and sold last month for near its asking price of $30 million.
The 9,000-square-foot house at 4005 South Ocean Boulevard is the first Palm Beach County property built by prolific Miami-based Sabal Development, a firm that specializes in luxury spec home construction and is working on another new home in Manalapan that it hopes to sell for between $50 million and $60 million.
Pascal Nicolai, the French-born founder of Sabal Development, said the quick sale of the fully furnished four-story home in Highland Beach is testament to the lack of new modern coastal construction in Palm Beach County. The $30 million price was $1.5 million less than what he initially wanted, but he said the small discount was worth getting the deal done quickly.
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Although the home was posted on the Multiple Listing Service for sale during construction, it went under contract in May just days after a certificate of occupancy was issued and an open house held. It closed Oct. 31 when the new owner returned for the winter season.
“The luxury market is amazing because there is not very much inventory and people are still coming here,” Nicolai said, noting the recent announcement by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos that he is leaving Seattle for Miami. “If you want a modern house on the beach there is not much of an opportunity for that today.”
Nicolai said the price per square foot of about $3,300 is a record in Highland Beach.
“When you walk down the stairs, you are on the sand,” he said. “It has a Malibu vibe because you are right on the beach.”
The home, named La Plage Villa (French for beach home), has seven bedrooms, 12 bathrooms, a five-car garage, rooftop deck and 100 feet of oceanfront. Sabal Development bought the property for $4.4 million in July 2016.
Nicolai would not disclose the buyer’s identity other than to say it was an American businessman. The buyer is listed on a deed filed in Palm Beach County official records as a trust named after the home’s address.
Premier Estate Properties agent Carmen D’Angelo represented Sabal Development in the sale. The buyer was represented by Nadine Cory of City Real Estate Corp. D’Angelo declined comment on the sale. Cory did not return messages seeking comment.
Nicolai’s anecdotal observation of more people — and wealth — moving to Florida is reflected in recent Census data.
Florida gained more than 738,000 new residents between July 2021 and July 2022 according to the bureau’s state-to-state migration report. That was the highest influx during that time period of any state, with Texas coming in second at 668,300 and California third at 475,900.
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Census data also showed the median income in Palm Beach County increased by nearly $10,000 between 2019 and 2022 to about $76,600.
Miami-Dade County saw an increase in income of about $12,100 during the same time period. Broward County experienced a median increase of about $9,500.
Nicolai said most of his buyers are from the Northeast and, more recently, California. Between 2021 and 2022, about 50,700 people moved to Florida from California, according to the recent Census data. Before the pandemic — between 2018 and 2019 — the number of California transplants to Florida was 28,630.
“My last three sales in Miami were to California people,” Nicolai said. “They are saving a lot on taxes, and if you have to choose between fire, earthquake and hurricane, I think I would choose hurricane.”
Palm Beach Post staff writer Chris Persaud contributed to this story.
Kimberly Miller is a veteran journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate and how growth affects South Florida’s environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to [email protected]. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today.
