Luxury home contracts in Palm Beach County increased significantly in the week following Zohran Mamdani’s election as mayor of New York City. According to a report from Douglas Elliman’s Eklund-Gomes team, buyers signed 29 contracts for luxury properties between November 10 and November 16. The total asking price for these homes reached $235 million, with an average of 105 days on the market.
This represents a notable rise compared to the previous week, when only 10 contracts were signed, totaling $67.7 million in asking volume.
The report covers single-family homes and condos listed at $3 million or more on the Beaches MLS. It also identified 63 new listings and a total of 1,181 active listings during this period.
Of the properties that went under contract last week, 23 were single-family homes and six were condos. The average asking price for condos was $3.8 million, or $1,260 per square foot, with an average time on market of 136 days. Single-family homes averaged an asking price of $9.2 million and spent about 74 days on the market.
The highest-priced home to find a buyer last week was a 17,100-square-foot mansion at 16101 Quiet Vista Circle in Stone Creek Ranch, listed at $47.5 million. This property is owned by Dan Dagesse, chairman of Norwood-based DCD Automotive Holdings—the parent company of Nucar, which operates over 30 car dealerships across New England, the Mid-Atlantic region, and Pennsylvania. Dagesse purchased the property for $2 million in 2018 and completed it in 2023 with AK Build & Design, Brenner Architectural Group, and Michael Gray Interiors. The estate features seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms, two half-bathrooms, spa facilities, gym, putting green, tennis court, club room with storage space, two-lane bowling alley, and a two-level pool. Colleen Nouhan with Premier Estate Properties holds the listing.
Another major deal involved a waterfront home at 631 Island Drive in Palm Beach listed at $37.5 million. Sellers Richard and Linda Schaps acquired the property for $7.9 million in 2012. Richard Schaps is known as founder of Van Wagner Group—a leading billboard and aerial advertising firm that sold its billboard division to CBS Outdoor for $690 million in 2014—and now focuses on sports and entertainment advertising at large events such as the Olympics and Super Bowl. Their home spans half an acre with seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms, three half-bathrooms, direct water frontage of 130 feet and a dock; Margit Brandt with Premier Estate Properties has this listing.
The surge in high-end real estate activity comes amid increased interest following recent political developments in New York City.
