‘Landmaxxing’ Is the New Flex for Billionaires — Here’s What It Is
Luxury land searches are up 97% this year as the ultra-wealthy race to buy out their neighbors and create high-end compounds.
Buying a $50 million mansion isn’t enough anymore. Now billionaires want the whole block. The trend, dubbed “landmaxxing,” has real estate buyers snapping up neighboring properties to build private compounds with amenities like pickleball courts, staff housing and private docks, The Wall Street Journal reports. In fact, searches for buildable land are up 97% year-over-year, according to a midyear report from Coldwell Banker.
Citadel founder Ken Griffin has spent more than $450 million assembling a 27-acre compound in Palm Beach. Jeff Bezos shelled out over $230 million on Indian Creek Island. WeatherTech founder David MacNeil has spent more than $230 million across three separate deals piecing together adjacent lots in Manalapan, Florida, and is in contract for a fourth.
Why are they doing it? “For some people, it is privacy and security,” said Miami agent Danny Hertzberg. “For others, it is a hedge against inflation.” As land grows scarce, brokers say buyers are increasingly willing to overpay just to keep their neighbors from selling to someone else.
Buying a $50 million mansion isn’t enough anymore. Now billionaires want the whole block. The trend, dubbed “landmaxxing,” has real estate buyers snapping up neighboring properties to build private compounds with amenities like pickleball courts, staff housing and private docks, The Wall Street Journal reports. In fact, searches for buildable land are up 97% year-over-year, according to a midyear report from Coldwell Banker.
Citadel founder Ken Griffin has spent more than $450 million assembling a 27-acre compound in Palm Beach. Jeff Bezos shelled out over $230 million on Indian Creek Island. WeatherTech founder David MacNeil has spent more than $230 million across three separate deals piecing together adjacent lots in Manalapan, Florida, and is in contract for a fourth.
Why are they doing it? “For some people, it is privacy and security,” said Miami agent Danny Hertzberg. “For others, it is a hedge against inflation.” As land grows scarce, brokers say buyers are increasingly willing to overpay just to keep their neighbors from selling to someone else.
