There’s no place like Palm Beach.
The 16-mile barrier island was transformed into an exclusive winter retreat for the wealthy over a century ago and remains a hub for America’s rich and powerful to this day.
Home to dozens of billionaires and plenty of trophy properties, Palm Beach is, of course, a lucrative place for luxury real estate agents. With eight- and nine-figure transactions common, some of the country’s biggest real estate agents have set up shop here, but getting a foothold isn’t easy. Most of the area’s top agents have been selling homes here for years. They’re attuned to the island lifestyle and the rhythm of “the season,” the period from Thanksgiving to Memorial Day when most of the more affluent part-time residents are in town.
For Palm Beach agents, being part of the lifestyle and community is essential. The island is notoriously closed off, and you need a seat at the table to close the biggest deals. So what is that exactly? To get a behind-the-scenes look at Palm Beach agent life, The Real Deal spoke to several brokers in the city to find out what it’s really like. It’s the off-season, and many are dropping in from client boats in the Hamptons or the Mediterranean.
Where is the power lunch?
There was only one universal answer to this question: Santo Ambroeus.
“Santo Ambroeus is Grand Central,” says local agent Chris Leavitt, who leads Douglas Elliman’s top Palm Beach team and sold a private island mansion for $152 million in May. “It’s the place everyone goes if they want to see and be seen.”
The Italian pasticceria was founded in Milan in 1936 and expanded to Manhattan’s Upper East Side in 1982. Today, Santo Ambroeus operates eight restaurants and cafes in Manhattan, two in the Hamptons and one in Aspen, whose footprint mirrors that of its well-heeled patrons.
The company opened its Palm Beach store at Royal Poinciana Plaza in 2016 and quickly became a local hotspot, and its popularity among real estate agents is due in part to its central location, says Samantha Curry, an agent with Elliman, a luxury specialist that has sold hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of property on the island.
“It’s 20 steps from my office,” she says. Brown Harris Stevens and Sotheby’s International Realty also have offices in the complex.
Other lunch spots mentioned include Cafe L’Europe, Palm Beach Grill, Bricktops and Cafe Boulud, an import from Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
Of course, there are social situations that call for more discretion: When courting potential clients or securing a property, agents say the best way to meet is in a private home or off-island.
What about the dinner scene?
In the evening, everyone seems to be dining at Le Bilboquet.
Another Manhattan staple has followed the money south: This French bistro was dubbed “New York’s snobbiest restaurant” in 2013, and it’s made its way naturally to Palm Beach in 2021. Located in the heart of Worth Avenue, the restaurant is funded and owned by art collector and Andy Warhol muse “Baby” Jane Holzer. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez were spotted dining there in December, sparking rumors that the billionaire couple are house-hunting. (In Miami-Dade County, the pair purchased a combined $234 million worth of mansions on one island in the past year alone.)
Investigators said he also frequented nearby restaurants Vice and Bacchan and their sister restaurant Imoto, and that Palm Beach Grill was also a favorite haunt.
“This is a small town, so every time you go to a top restaurant you run into a lot of different people and other top brokers,” Curry said.
Palm Beach season includes a packed schedule of philanthropic cocktail parties, galas and luncheons. Which are your must-attend events?
From late fall to early spring, the island’s social scene is dominated by a succession of charity events, ranging from small luncheons and fun runs to black-tie balls featuring world-famous performers. Agents cited the big events as including the amfAR Foundation for AIDS Research’s annual gala (recently attended by Tom Ford, Kris Jenner, and Tommy Hilfiger, and featuring a performance by Sting), the Society of the Four Arts’ Contemporary Gala (this year’s theme was Cleopatra), the Norton Museum of Art’s annual gala (which includes an auction hosted by Sotheby’s), the International Red Cross Ball, the Palm Beach Heart Ball, and the Boys & Girls Clubs’ Winter Ball (which this year brought in $14.5 million).
Many of these take place in private properties and clubs around the island and their popularity varies depending on who is hosting the party that year.
“You could do something every night of the week if you wanted to,” says Whitney McGuirk, an agent with Brown Harris Stevens. “I know a lot of people are trying to get out and attend as many events and charities as they can.”
McGurk, who runs the top-tier BHS team with Lisa Pulitzer, grew up on the island and knows it well. The couple put the home, which they renovated by interior designer Victoria Hagan, on the market for cheap and sold it in May for $60.4 million, making it one of the most expensive non-waterfront homes ever sold in Palm Beach.
McGuirk said he never misses the Four Arts Gala, the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League Christmas Ball or the Everglades Foundation party. Curry said he works closely with the Opportunity Early Childhood Education and Family Center and the Hope for Depression Research Foundation. Top local agent Christian Angle is joined by Palm Beach newcomer Michael Rober as vice chair of this year’s amfAR gala. Angle also serves on the advisory board of the Palm Beach County Historical Society.
“You don’t want to be in it all, but be selective. Donate to charities you trust,” Leavitt says. “If you’re in it all as an agent, it’s clear why you’re there.”
A big part of Palm Beach’s social life takes place in private clubs. Are there any that attract top agents?
The room was silent. If there’s one thing Palm Beach residents don’t talk about, it’s their private clubs. There are seven on the island: the Everglades Club, the Bath and Tennis Club, the Palm Beach Country Club, the Beach Club, the Sailfish Club, the Breakers, and, of course, Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago. Membership fees are estimated to range from $250,000 to $1 million, and potential members can wait years.
With so many people moving to the island, demand for memberships has skyrocketed, making entry fees prohibitive for many brokers.
“Not a lot of people belong to clubs because it’s too expensive,” said Elliman agent Gary Poehler, who declined to say which club he belongs to. “I think it’s important to have a club membership, and it doesn’t have to be on the island.”
That’s why Curry said he’s a member of the newly opened Panther National in Palm Beach Gardens and the Concours Club, an auto enthusiasts club in Opalocka that offers its members a private, two-mile race circuit. Curry said he loves taking clients there and driving them on the circuit.
One of the clubs people are talking about is the Carriage House.
“The Carriage House has become a new kind of hotspot for the younger generation,” says McGurk, who isn’t a member but diners with friends at the private dining club, which has become a bit of a nightlife hub for younger members. Real estate investor Michael Bickford and his wife, Paula, founded the club in 2022, and Palm Beach’s younger generation is excited about what McGurk calls its “quirky vibe.”
You often travel by car between events, exhibitions, meetings and dinners. What kind of car do you use?
Most of them are luxury SUVs: Currie drives a Bentley Bentayga, and McGurk drives a Range Rover Sport, but they also occasionally drive around the island with clients in a 1978 Jeep CJ-7.
Mr. Pollard, who drives a Range Rover and occasionally gives clients rides in a golf cart to get a taste of the laid-back Palm Beach life, said agents must strike a delicate balance with their vehicles.
“You can’t overdo it. Range Rovers have become the standard for property sellers in this part of the world where four-wheel drive is not really necessary,” he says. “Some agents may have Lamborghini SUVs… but I don’t think that sends the right message.”
Levitt said he usually drives a white Mercedes G-Wagon, except when he doesn’t want anyone to recognize him or see where he’s going.
“You never know who you’re going to see take a car out. We all know each other’s cars,” he said. “I have another car that nobody knows about.”
