So you bitches can kiss my ass.

Palm Beach mansion fetches $81.5 million

By JEFF OSTROWSKI

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Friday, April 18, 2008

PALM BEACH — In another sign of just how hot the mansion market is, the oceanfront estate built by billionaire businessman and philanthropist Sidney Kimmel has sold for $81.5 million, a record for the island.

John L. Thornton, 54, a former Goldman Sachs partner and chairman of the Brookings Institution, is the buyer, people familiar with the transaction said.


Noteworthy: Financier Ron Perelman sold the property to home builder Rob Salvador in 2004. Salvador later paid $22 million for the lot next door.


While the sale price was officially recorded Tuesday at $77.5 million, listing agent Paulette Koch said the buyer also paid $4 million in closing costs. That means Salvador got his full asking price of $81.5 million.

The deal underscores both the strength of the mansion market and the desirability of Salvador's home at 1236 S. Ocean Blvd.

"The house was in impeccable condition, with the finest details," said Koch, adding that three other buyers were interested in the property.

The estate boasts 5 lushly landscaped acres and 300 feet of ocean frontage. The 32,000-square-foot home was designed by Thierry Despont, who also created Bill Gates' mansion.

The living room includes 26-foot ceilings and 20-foot-high glass panels that disappear into the floor at the push of a button.

The home also features a wine cellar, pool, waterfalls, staff quarters and an air chiller and 27-zone air conditioning system.

The sale tops the previous Palm Beach record of $70 million, which Ron Perelman's estate fetched in 2004.

Palm Beach Realtor John Pinson said he wasn't surprised that Kimmel's house sold so quickly and for full price.

"There are only so many outstanding, exceptional properties, and this is one of them," Pinson said. "It's a very nice, isolated location, and the beach is very pretty."

For many, the home's property tax bill alone would prove daunting - $517,775 last year.

While the overall housing market in Palm Beach County has struggled since late 2005, the mansion market in the town of Palm Beach is booming.

County home prices dipped 4 percent from 2006 to 2007, according to the Florida Association of Realtors, but Palm Beach prices jumped 13 percent during that period, according to a study by Palm Beach attorney Les Evans.

"There are buyers out there with plenty of money that they can afford to spend," Pinson said. "When you get into this very elite level, certain people are unaffected by economic changes because they're blessed with a lot of wealth."


Thornton could not be reached for comment. In addition to his role with Brookings, an independent research and policy institute based in Washington, he is a director of Intel Corp., Ford Motor Co. and News Corp. He's also a professor of global leadership at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

It's not the first time Thornton has proved bullish on real estate.

In 2001, he set a record for New Jersey home sales by paying $18 million for a 118-acre estate in Bedminster that Princeton University had been using as a retreat, The New York Times reported.

You'd have been going a long way towards convincing if you had edited the entire article... :)

Truth! Times are hard and I cannot see a house going for 81.5 mil. but to purchase the lot next door just seams senile. 67hhers56 investing at such a low time must be brilliant, however Rob I doubt that you are the beneficiary of such investment.

Ty, Rob didnt have time to respond to your allegations. However, I am his private secretary, Manfred and I have been authorized to act in his behalf. Please note your invitation to Mr. Salvador's pleasure yacht, The Indefatigable has been rescinded.

TY
Manfred

I'm still going, right? I bought new shoes and a captain's hat. :)

Mr. Manfred, I am sorry to confuse you with a certain Mr. Salvador, but to rescind the invitation to what maybe one of the most entertaining guest the said yacht may have, would be most disappointing for the said yacht. Please do not misinterpret my intentions, it was merely in a comical sense that I reply to a weary episode of luxury that you persist would be an enjoyable life for a short moment.

Best Regards
To you sir and your acquaintance.