Jeffrey Epstein’s Caribbean Islands Now Available For $76.5 Million Each
Buyers can still purchase Great St. James and Little St. James together for around a discounted $153 million
Buyers can still purchase Great St. James and Little St. James together for around a discounted $153 million
Jeffrey Epstein’s estate is cutting the price of two private Caribbean islands that were owned by the late disgraced financier, according to one of the listing agents.
The islands, known as Great St. James and Little St. James, were first listed as a pair for $125 million in March. They will now be available separately for $76.5 million apiece, representing a 12% reduction in the overall ask, one of the listing agents said. If a buyer wanted to purchase both, they could still do so for a combined $153 million.
Located in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the properties are among the final pieces of Epstein’s sprawling international property portfolio, portions of which have already sold for large sums.
The estate sold Epstein’s Upper East Side Manhattan mansion for $71 million in March 2021, and his Palm Beach home for $25.7 million in March 2021, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Palm Beach home has since been torn down.
Adam Modlin of Modlin Group, one of the agents marketing the islands, said that several potential buyers have expressed interest in the properties, but that there was more interest in them individually than as a pair.
Great St. James, located across the bay from St. Thomas, spans more than 160 acres and has only a small collection of structures as well as a marine preserve known as Christmas Cove, listing materials show.
Little St. James has over 70 acres, a helipad, a private dock, a gas station, two pools, a main residential compound, four guest villas, three private beaches, a gym and a tiki hut.
Epstein, who died in an apparent suicide at a New York detention centre in 2019, was accused by Virgin Islands prosecutors in 2020 of bringing girls as young as 11 to the islands and sexually assaulting them.
Daniel Weiner, an attorney for the Epstein estate, said proceeds from the sale of the islands will go to resolving outstanding lawsuits and the costs of the estate’s operations and will be subject to tax authorities, creditors and other claimants, including liens placed on the properties by U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George.
Mr. Modlin is marketing the properties with Bespoke Real Estate and in partnership with a local Virgin Islands firm, Christie’s International Real Estate the Saints.
Epstein’s other remaining properties include a ranch in Santa Fe, N.M., which is listed for $38.3 million.
This stylish family home combines a classic palette and finishes with a flexible floorplan
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
Savvy high net worth players from Australia and Asia are getting on board as the residential landscape shifts
Build-to-rent (BTR) residential property has emerged as one of the key sectors of interest among institutional and private high-net-worth investors across the Asia-Pacific region, according to a new report from CBRE. In a survey of 500 investors, BTR recorded the strongest uptick in interest, particularly among investors targeting value-added strategies to achieve double-digit returns.
CBRE said the residential investment sector is set to attract more capital this year, with investors in Japan, Australia and mainland China the primary markets of focus for BTR development. BTR is different from regular apartment developments because the developer or investor–owner retains the entire building for long-term rental income. Knight Frank forecasts that by 2030, about 55,000 dedicated BTR apartments will have been completed in Australia.
Knight Frank says BTR is a proven model in overseas markets and Australia is now following suit.
“Investors are gravitating toward the residential sector because of the perception that it offers the ability to adjust rental income streams more quickly than other sectors in response to high inflation,” Knight Frank explained in a BTR report published in September 2023.
The report shows Melbourne has the most BTR apartments under construction, followed by Sydney. Most of them are one and two-bedroom apartments. The BTR sector is also growing in Canberra and Perth where land costs less and apartment rental yields are among the highest in the country at 5.1 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively, according to the latest CoreLogic data.
In BTR developments, there is typically a strong lifestyle emphasis to encourage renters to stay as long as possible. Developments often have proactive maintenance programs, concierges, add-on cleaning services for tenants, and amenities such as a gym, pool, yoga room, cinema, communal working spaces and outdoor barbecue and dining areas.
Some blocks allow tenants to switch apartments as their space needs change, many are pet-friendly and some even run social events for residents. However, such amenities and services can result in BTR properties being expensive to rent. Some developers and investors have been given subsidies to reserve a portion of BTR apartments as ‘affordable homes’ for local essential services workers.
Ray White chief economist Nerida Conisbee says Australian BTR is a long way behind the United States, where five percent of the country’s rental supply is owned by large companies. She says BTR is Australia’s “best bet” to raise rental supply amid today’s chronic shortage that has seen vacancy rates drop below 1% nationwide and rents skyrocket 40% over the past four years.
Ms Conisbee says 84 percent of Australian rental homes are owned by private landlords, typically mum and dad investors, and nine percent are owned by governments. “With Australia currently in the midst of a rental crisis, the question of who provides rental properties needs to be considered,” Ms Conisbee said. “We have relied heavily on private landlords for almost all our rental properties but we may not be able to so readily in the future.” She points out that large companies can access and manage debt more easily than private landlords when interest rates are high.
The CBRE report shows that Asia-Pacific investors are also interested in other types of residential properties. These include student accommodation, particularly in high migration markets like Australia, and retirement communities in markets with ageing populations, such as Japan and Korea. Most Asia Pacific investors said they intended to increase or keep their real estate allocations the same this year, with more than 50 percent of Australian respondents intending to invest more.
Consumers are going to gravitate toward applications powered by the buzzy new technology, analyst Michael Wolf predicts
This stylish family home combines a classic palette and finishes with a flexible floorplan