Zuckerberg said to join billionaires fleeing California for Florida enclave over proposed wealth tax
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Mr Mark Zuckerberg is looking at purchasing a property on Indian Creek, a man-made island in Biscayne Bay known as Billionaires Bunker, a source said.
PHOTO: REUTERS
San Francisco – Billionaire Meta Platforms founder Mark Zuckerberg is planning to buy a property in the Miami area, according to a person familiar with the matter, joining a roster of ultra-wealthy individuals expanding their footprints in South Florida.
Mr Zuckerberg and his wife, Ms Priscilla Chan, are looking at purchasing a property on Indian Creek, a man-made island in Biscayne Bay known as Billionaires Bunker, the person said. Residents of the ultra-secure enclave include Mr Jared Kushner, his wife Ivanka Trump, Mr Jeff Bezos, Mr Carl Icahn and Mr Tom Brady.
The potential purchase comes as California debates a proposed one-time wealth tax on billionaires that would apply to unrealised gains, a measure that has stirred concern among investors and business leaders across the state. Several billionaires, including Mr Peter Thiel and Mr David Sacks, have left California in the face of the proposal.
Mr Zuckerberg has also grown closer to US President Donald Trump in his second term, and has visited Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach on multiple occasions.
With a net worth of about US$240 billion (S$304 billion), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Mr Zuckerberg owns two homes in California – in Palo Alto and near Lake Tahoe – and others in Hawaii and Washington, DC. It was unclear whether his plans to purchase in Florida would represent a change in residence or an addition to his real estate portfolio.
In recent weeks, Google’s co-founders have both made purchases in South Florida. Mr Larry Page bought three homes in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighbourhood for a combined total of nearly US$190 million, while Mr Sergey Brin reportedly is purchasing a roughly US$50 million home on Biscayne Bay.
The union-backed ballot measure in California, which still has to gather enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, calls for a one-time 5 per cent tax on those with more than US$1 billion in net worth to cover funding shortfalls for health care, education and food assistance.
The proposal has helped galvanise a new pro-business political effort backed by some of the industry’s wealthiest figures. A group called Building a Better California, supported by donors including Mr Brin and former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, has raised about US$35 million. BLOOMBERG
