One of the Most Expensive Homes in U.S. Hits Miami Market for $169M

Miami Beach's most expansive oceanfront property is back on sale this month for $169 million after selling for $105 million earlier this year, according to Realtor.com.

Real estate developer Todd Michael Glaser bought the 2.34-acre property in February with plans to transform it into a quarter-million-dollar megamansion or flip it for profit, the outlet reported. The estate topped Realtor.com's weekly list of the nation's most expensive homes, which includes three other South Florida properties.

The eight-bedroom, 13-bath, 16,900-square-foot home at 5490 N Bay Rd. on 2.34 acres features deep-water access to Biscayne Bay. The 1936-built home is priced at a whopping $9,994 per square foot.

"Lavish highlights include a curved imperial staircase, a dining room designed for grand-scale entertaining, home theater, fitness center, waterfront billiards room, a built-in entertainment bar, sauna, primary suite with domed ceilings, and an indoor racquetball court," the Realtor.com story reads. Other features and amenities include covered terraces and several patios overlooking an oceanside pool, hot tub, tennis court, and boat dock. The home is as expansive as you'd expect for one with such a high price tag; the front lawn could host a few football games at once, its dining room could comfortably accommodate a Medieval Times dinner theater show, and one might easily recreate Beauty and the Beast's iconic waltz in the atrium.
Glaser "cleaned up" and furnished the home since buying it earlier this year, he tells New Times. His portfolio includes opulent homes in Miami Beach, Palm Beach, Newport Beach, California, and other properties in Manhattan.

"The market is strong in Miami Beach; we've had a record number of $100-million homes being sold this year," Glaser tells New Times.

Glaser says he expects the property to sell, but will tear it down and sell the land if it sits on the market longer than four months. Most of the value is in the land, he says, which he estimates to be worth more than $160 million.

The Bay Road listing placed Glaser's property at the top of Realtor.com's ten most expensive homes on the market across the country, topping homes in Jupiter, Palm Beach, and Coral Gables. The $169 million listing edged out a $110 million Santa Monica home and a $75 million Beverly Hills estate for the top spot.

A $42.5 million home in Jupiter at the northeastern tip of Palm Beach County placed fifth on the list, while a $34.5 million Palm Beach property placed seventh, and a $27.5 million Coral Gables mansion placed came in at the tenth spot.