A-List buyer acquires $250M land for 'billionaire bunker'
According to an explosive a Wall Street Journal investigation, the anonymous buyer - possibly a tech titan, hedge fund magnate, or reclusive billionaire - has scooped up four adjacent properties north of Trump's estate on Palm Beach's ritzy North Ocean Boulevard. The purchases reportedly include two oceanfront parcels formerly owned by cosmetics heir William Lauder, together with two luxury homes across the street. Lauder originally listed the oceanfront lots for a jaw-dropping $200 million, and though the February deal never appeared in public records, sources say the final price came close. One of the properties spans 2.8 acres and offers 360 feet of pristine beach frontage - an amount practically unheard of in such a cramped area of real estate. In early June, the mystery mogul struck again this time paying $18 million in cash for a Mediterranean-style home across the street in an unsolicited offer.
That home had last sold for just $4.15 million in 2018. Days later, the buyer snapped up the neighboring house for a dizzying $30 million - nearly six times its 2017 sale price. 'The prices paid… are significantly higher than their market values,' reported WSJ, quoting agents who say the strategy is to build privacy and control the block. The scale and secrecy of the acquisitions have drawn comparisons to hedge fund titan Ken Griffin, who famously spent over $400 million assembling a mega compound in Palm Beach over the past decade. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has similarly gobbled up more than $230 million in property across Indian Creek, often called 'Billionaire Bunker Island.' But this new development may eclipse even them.
'This kind of assemblage, it just signals bigger things for South Florida,' said Peggy Olin, CEO of OneWorld Properties to Fox News. 'We're going to continue seeing these types of high-net-worth individuals just continuing to make South Florida just extremely elite and a safe place for all of them to gather. It's the connectivity. Palm Beach, in general, is becoming one of the few places in the country where you find the billionaire bunker situation or billionaire's row, per se,' Olin told Fox. 'It's just a lot about the caché and the ultra-elite.'
The inland properties were purchased through Delaware-based LLCs linked to Seattle attorney Greyson Blue, whose law firm K&L Gates has long-standing ties to Bill Gates's (pictured) late father. Blue also previously worked at the Gates Foundation, fueling speculation that the famously private Microsoft co-founder could be behind the mystery deals. But a source close to the Gates Foundation quickly poured cold water on the stating 'Gates isn't the buyer of the Palm Beach properties.'
Other names floated include former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer (pictured), now the owner of the LA Clippers, and Charles Simonyi the software architect behind Microsoft Word and Excel - both of whom are known for operating below the radar despite their massive fortunes. Rock legend Jon Bon Jovi owns the property immediately adjacent to these parcels of land and the mystery mogul is said to have tried to buy Bon Jovi's estate off-market, but the singer wouldn't budge. Bon Jovi paid $43 million for the beachfront mansion in 2020 and according to insiders, is not interested in selling - even at a substantial profit.
'They want to remain as private as possible,' Olin said of the mystery buyer. 'They want to make sure that no one else is cramping their style… They want to do everything in private so they can get what they want at the end. Like him or Ken Griffin (pictured) or Jeff Bezos, all of these guys are seeing South Florida as their future,' Olin said. 'To me, it is fantastic… not only in real estate, but all around.' Palm Beach agent Dana Koch of the Corcoran Group said similar noting how the 'two acres directly on the ocean with 360 feet of water frontage, along with the properties across the street, is extremely rare to find in Palm Beach.' 'After buying all of these properties at a mind-boggling number [the buyer] is protecting his investment and affording himself even more privacy,' Koch said.
Mar-a-Lago is a private club and was first constructed in 1927, and was bought by Donald Trump in 1985 for $10 million, per The Palm Beach Post. Last year, the president claimed that the resort is worth around $1 billion - with the Trump International Golf Club just minutes away. He has often been seen visiting the sprawling property over the years, but has frequented less often after being elected as the 47th President of the United States last year in November. However, that has not stopped fans and visitors from traveling down to Palm Beach to get a glimpse of the resort - which is not open to the public. According to Bloomberg, those who want to become members at the exclusive resort need to pay an initiation fee of $1 million.
Permanent residents in the Palm Beach area near Mar-a-Lago have been left 'aghast' by the amount of Trump supporters who have recently flooded the area. 'I think this town is a little bit aghast at itself,' Palm Beach native Celerie Kemble told The New York Times. Jon Bon Jovi was a public supporter of Kamala Harris and endorsed her last year during the presidential campaign. While promoting a song called The People's House on Instagram at the time, he also explained his endorsement to his followers. The star is known for starting the rock band Bon Jovi in 1983 - which has dropped hits such as Livin' On A Prayer, Blaze Of Glory and Bed Of Roses.
The singer has been keeping busy and recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of the band's 2024 album Forever last month. Along with sharing behind-the-scenes of putting the LP together, he also added a message to his fans. '1 year ago we released FOREVER in celebration of our 40th anniversary as a band,' the performer penned. 'Thank you to everyone who's listened and celebrated with us all these years ❤️ FOREVER doesn't stop here…'
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