‘We have undoubtedly seen a huge bump after the election,’ Margit Brandt, a broker with Premier Estate Properties, told Mansion Global. ‘Palm Beach is now at the center of the universe.’
After Donald Trump won the 2024 Presidential election, tech stocks surged, cryptocurrencies skyrocketed, and AI giants finalized investment deals.
But an unexpected trend has also taken off — an unprecedented demand for ultra-luxury real estate near his Florida home.
Billionaires are pouring money into Palm Beach County, driving a frenzy for $10 million-plus homes, Mansion Global reports.
Sales of these high-end properties have tripled compared to previous years.Palm Beach — the exclusive island home to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago — is seeing the most interest.
‘We have undoubtedly seen a huge bump after the election,’ Margit Brandt, a broker with Premier Estate Properties, told Mansion Global. ‘Palm Beach is now at the center of the universe.’
Billionaires have flocked to the beach to curry favor with the new administration. Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Joe Rogan headline a list of deep-pocketed men who flew into the area to dine with the president after his win.
Even Elon Musk offered $100 million for a nearby penthouse.
The sales surge began right after Trump was elected. In November and December, 19 homes in that area sold for more than $10 million. Only six homes sold at the same price point in the same time the year before.
Since then, mansions have flown off the market at an even quicker clip. In January alone, 13 homes sold for over $10 million in the county.
Some giant homes, complete with security details, have fetched even more gob-smacking prices.
A mansion sold for as much as $419 million. Another sold for $213 million.
Other big-name media personnel closely associated to Trump have gotten into the action — Sean Hannity purchased this mansion for $23.5 million.
As investment flows to the island, several major cities close to the Florida resorts are struggling with real estate market lapses.
Miami-Dade and Broward counties have struggled with dwindling home sales numbers. Completed contracts are down in both counties by 45 percent since January 2024.
Meanwhile, contracts fetching more than $5 million have fallen by half in Miami.
But the lack of sales has increased the availability of luxury homes in both markets. Miami-Dade and Broward both said there available luxury homes have increased by 60 percent.
The struggle to sell homes has started to infect other parts of Florida.
Homes in New Smyrna Beach, Palm Coast, Panama City, and Gainesville have a 90-day sell period, per Relator.com.
Florida, which has been hit by destructive hurricanes and life-threatening flooding, has turned off buyers just a few years after it became America’s hottest housing markets.
The natural disasters have increased interest rates, insurance prices, and contributed to housing construction shortages.
‘Recent storms not only left behind devastation but also spooked potential buyers, delaying transactions and driving down confidence,’ Tony Barrett, the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee’s president, told the New York Post.