Paradiso Del Mar estate goes to auction Saturday
Final open house takes place today
A sprawling ocean and lakefront estate known as Paradiso del Mar, complete with tunnel, seaside cottage, fabulous views and garages for 30 vehicles, is scheduled for auction Saturday in the upscale Palm Beach County town of Manalapan.
The house, at 1960 S. Ocean Blvd., was built in 1989. The property covers 4.17 acres on both sides of State Road A1A and appears on a local multiple listing service at $24.5 million.
“A property of this quality doesn’t come on the market very often. The views are absolutely gorgeous,” said Daniel DeCaro, founder and CEO of DeCaro Auctions International, which is conducting the sale. “It’s being sold furnished. It’s really just a turnkey. You buy it and move in.”
The main house, which is on a lake, contains seven bedrooms, 13 baths and 23,817 square feet of inside and outside living space. The home has a twin marble staircase, a library, wood-adorned study with fireplace, greenhouse and garages. The front doors open to a rotunda foyer with the staircase leading to guest bedrooms. A dock can accommodate a boat of up to 125 feet.
The ocean-side property has two acres of sand dunes, a private beach and cottage.
A tunnel connects both properties, running beneath A1A for beach access.
The seller, William T. Gerrard, is an entrepreneur who founded eight successful businesses, including Advanced Radio Communications Services Inc. He bought the estate in 1994 and acquired land to the north and south of the home in later years.
Gerrard is a former mayor of Manalapan. According to the Coastal Star newspaper, he was appointed in October 2008 and elected to a full two-year term in March 2009. He resigned for family reasons in 2010. Gerrard also served on the town’s architectural commission.
Gerrard initially put the home up for sale the year of his resignation, and it has been on and off the market ever since. Initially, it was listed at $34.5 million. Since then, the price has eased to $32 million
and then to $24.9 million, DeCaro said.
“I think what invariably happens with homes like this is people have attempted traditionally to sell their home, and now they let the market come to them,” DeCaro said.
Bidders can sign up Friday and Saturday at the house, which is the site of the auction. Bidding starts at 11 a.m. Remote bidders can sign up on the auction company’s website. All comers must produce a $200,000 deposit that is refundable for those who do not win the day.
Previews have been under way for several weeks. A final open house is scheduled for today. For more information, visit DeCaroAuctions.com.