Billionaire optometrist and inventor Dr. Herbert Wertheim paid $65 million for an oceanfront estate in Manalapan, adding to his portfolio of luxury homes.
Property records show a land trust sold the nearly 28,000-square-foot mansion at 1160 South Ocean Boulevard. Weirtheim’s purchase was the first home sale in Manalapan to trade above $60 million since Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison’s $173 million acquisition in 2022.
The deed was recorded for $61.8 million, and the additional $3 million spent included furniture and other credits, according to a Corcoran Group spokesperson. Corcoran’s Phil and Candace Friis represented the seller.
The 2-acre property includes two swimming pools, an air-conditioned garage that fits more than 13 cars, a cabana, gate house and dock with boat lifts, according to the listing agents.
It’s one of about 60 properties in Manalapan that includes access to the ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway, connected by an underground tunnel. The house has eight bedrooms, eight bathrooms and six half-bathrooms. The property includes 160 feet of water frontage.
The trust previously paid $28 million for the property in 2021, which means it more than doubled in value in four years.
Last year, Wertheim paid $38 million for the waterfront house at 305 Indian Road in Palm Beach. Developer Todd Glaser sold him the property. Wertheim founded and leads Brain Power, the largest producer of optical tints for eyeglasses, and has a net worth of $3.9 billion, according to Forbes, down about $2 billion since last year.
Buyers like Manalapan because the properties are larger than Palm Beach but still close to landmarks such as President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club, agents say. Ellison, one of the richest people in the world, is doubling down on his investment in Manalapan: Last year, he paid $277.4 million for the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa. Earlier this year, WeatherTech founder David MacNeil spent an additional $55.5 million on oceanfront property in Manalapan. Developer Joe Farrell sold the incomplete 1.6-acre spec estate at 1140 South Ocean Boulevard to MacNeil.
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