It seems that Key Biscayne hedge fund manager John Devaney, CEO of United Capital made a bad decision by investing in the mortage market right before it collapsed. 

According to TheStreet.com, Devaney put

“…one of his most prized possessions-a 142–foot Trinity yacht dubbed Positive Carry— up for sale along with his $16.5 million second-home in Aspen, CO.  The house, called Sardy House, is the site of the nations’ largest living Christmas tree.”

Well it seems Mr. Devaney is at it again.  He has listed a large collection of ultra-luxury estates on the tony Isle of Key Biscayne.  The combined list prices of the seven properties total $78.8M. The properties went on the market on Wednesday and have created pandemonium.  These parcels are said to be some of the most prime pieces of Key Biscayne real estate.

The most notable property for sale is the Scarface estate where Michelle Pfeiffer descends into the living room to greet “Tony” in the glass elevator.

Devaney is asking $38.5 big ones for that baby.

1. 485 W. Matheson Drive– $38.5M

2. 550 Harbor Cove– $10.4M

3. 780 Harbour Drive– $11.3M

4. 640 Sunset Circle-$8.3M

5. 530 Harbour Drive– $4.3M

6. 251 Harbour Drive– $3.1M

7. 255 Buttonwood-$2.9M 

Devaney bought the majority of the Key Biscayne properties in 03 & 04 and spent almost $32M acquiring the seven properties according to the Miami-Dade County records.

At one point, Devaney was a player in the failed Briny Breezes project.

That’s right. Four combined penthouse units at Michael Graves’ 1500 Ocean Drive went under contract Friday. The unit is comprised of 11,940 interior sq. ft., 8,200 sq. ft. of private roof terrace (unfinished) and 1,624 sq. ft. of balconies.

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I remember when I got into the real estate business about 15 years ago that agents who primarily sold condos were considered second-class brokers. How times have changed.

Word on the street (or in my ear) is that the penthouse at Setai South Beach, located at 101 20^th Street in Miami Beach, is under contract. Penthouse Villa B encompasses the entire 40^th floor of the high rise and is 6,200 interior sq. ft. with a 4,000 sq. ft. roof terrace and private pool.

While this rumored sale would be newsworthy on its own, the magnitude of this potential sale is staggering. If the unit closes at or above $22.5M (which I heard…), here’s what it would mean:

Real Estate Records Broken in Miami-Dade & Broward Counties

It would be the second highest-priced residential property (condo or single family home/land) ever to be recorded in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

If the closed price is at $22.5M, or above, that would mean a price of $3,624 p.s.f., which would beat the previously-reported pre-construction sale at the nearby W South Beach of a one-bedroom direct oceanfront bungalow at $3,348 p.s.f .

The Setai penthouse was purchased in May 2004 for $9.5M and is owned by Andrew and Elyse Barroway of Philadelphia. They seem to have a knack for picking winners when it comes to real estate.

Luxury Miami Beach & Fisher Island Condos Continue to Break Real Estate Records

Despite weaker market conditions for “regular” condominiums, 2007 has been a very good year for luxury condos in Miami Beach and Fisher Island.

Right now, I’m listening to Frank Sinatra sing “It was a very good year.” Indeed it has been so far.

Rumor has it that a former executive and co-owner of a now-defunct high-end brokerage,  which merged with Coldwell Banker in 2002, is planning to start his own firm now that his non-compete clause is coming to an end.