Thursday, July 17, 2008

'Donald Trump sells Florida mansion for record sum'

The Guardian is full of good stuff today.

It is a number sure to bring cheer to the average real estate mogul in these trying times.

Waxen-haired serial sacker and noted golfer Donald Trump did what he reportedly does best this week, closing the deal on the sale of his Florida beachfront mansion for a record sum.

Maison de L'Amitie, a modest 60,000-square-foot property in Palm Beach, sold for a reported $95m on Tuesday, making it the most expensive residential sale ever recorded in the US, according to Trump's spokesperson. . . .

The grandiose mansion, otherwise known as 515 North County Road features an array of trademark Trump features: A circular gallery boasts a series of trompe l'oeil reproductions of famous paintings, white marble columns and formal gardens abound, and the bathrooms are graced with 24-karat gold fixtures.

But all this may be so much clutter left by the previous owner to the buyer, Russian fertilizer oligarch, Dmitry Rybolovlev. Amid conflicting reports about his intentions for the property, Rybolovlev may want to tear it down and start again.

The Russian, number 59 on the Forbes list of the world's richest people with an estimated net worth of $12.8bn, is thought to have bought the property for the 475-foot chunk of beachfront it commands. . . .

Although the sale price did not reach Trump's initial valuation of $125m, it still beats other large residential purchases, including the $70m paid for Ron Perelman's Palm Beach estate in 2004, and the $81.5m paid in April for a nearby Palm Beach property.

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