Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Citadel founder Ken Griffin, venture capitalist Peter Thiel and billionaire hedge-funders Scott Shleifer and Daniel Loeb are among the billionaires who’ve recently upped sticks for Miami. But a sprawling waterfront compound new to market in Naples, Florida, might be enough to tempt them across the state.
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Gordon Pointe, the former home of the late financier John Donahue, is on the market for a potentially record-breaking $295 million. If it sells for anywhere in the region, it will become the most expensive home ever sold in the US, surpassing the previous record set by hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin with his $240 million penthouse purchase in 220 Central Park South, in Manhattan, in 2019.
Certainly there is no shortage of wealthy neighbours who might be interested. According to wealth research firm Henley & Partners, there are now 12 billionaires resident in Miami, which is a little more than a two-hour drive away. On the next rung down, the city also contains the largest share of America’s centimillionaires.
Gordon Pointe: a flyby dream
/ Image: Dawn McKenna Group/Coldwell Banker Realty
John Donahue, who died at Gordon Pointe in 2017, was the founder of Federated Investors, now Federated Hermes, an investment management firm with $758 billion AuM. The story goes that he first spotted the stretch of land while flying over the peninsula in the Gulf of Mexico with his wife, Rhodora, and in 1985 bought a 4.3-acre plot for $1 million.
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Over the next 30 years, the couple grew their holding into a 60-acre private compound. The plot that has been put up for sale accounts for just over 9 acres of the most exclusive real estate, boasting a private 231ft yacht basin and a T-dock for six boats; 708ft of beachfront; and 952 feet of bay views.
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Although there are three impressive homes on the plot, the property can also accommodate more than 200,000 sq ft of residential development potential, which has been marketed as ‘ideal for a family compound or a subdivided community for a lucky few’.
Sun, sea and security
Gordon Pointe has been brought to market by Coldwell Banker Realty’s Dawn McKenna Group, in partnership with The Leighton Candler Team of Corcoran and Rory McMullen, a Spear’s Top Recommended adviser and head of the North America desk, at Savills Private Office.
The agents believe the combination of secluded location and waterfront access will appeal to ultra-high-net-worth buyers who want to experience the benefits of a beachfront lifestyle without compromising on privacy and security.
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‘The significant migration of wealth to Naples on the west coast of Florida has been well documented, especially for those buyers looking for privacy and security,’ explains McMullen. ‘What makes Gordon Pointe so unique is the combination of compound-style living and its beachside setting. Opportunities like this are rarely available, it’s quite simply, a once in a generation opportunity.’
Leighton Candler, founder of The Leighton Candler Team, at Corcoran, adds: ‘One of the reasons that we’re so excited about Gordon Pointe is that it provides exactly the type of compound our clientele of luxury buyers want.
‘They love seclusion, they love privacy, and they love being on the water. Gordon Pointe gives you all the benefits of being on an island without being isolated from the rest of the world, making this an exceedingly rare and exceptional property.’
Image: Dawn McKenna Group/Coldwell Banker Realty
