Zuckerberg set to join California billionaires with Miami home

[SAN FRANCISCO] Billionaire Meta Platforms founder Mark Zuckerberg is planning to buy a property in the Miami area, according to a source familiar with the matter, joining a roster of ultra-wealthy individuals expanding their footprints in South Florida.

Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are looking at purchasing a property on Indian Creek, a man-made island in Biscayne Bay known as Billionaires Bunker, the source added.

Residents of the ultra-secure enclave include Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, Jeff Bezos, Carl Icahn and Tom Brady.

With a net worth of about US$240 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Zuckerberg owns two homes in California – in Palo Alto and near Lake Tahoe – and others in Hawaii and Washington, DC.

It was unclear whether Zuckerberg’s plans to purchase in Florida would represent a change in residence or an addition to his real estate portfolio.

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 Peter Thiel and David Sacks, have left California in the face of the proposal.

A Meta spokesperson declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported on Zuckerberg’s purchase of a Florida home.

South Florida has continued to attract wealthy technology executives from California. In recent weeks, Google’s co-founders have both made purchases in the area. Larry Page bought three homes in Miami’s Coconut Grove neighbourhood for a combined total of nearly US$190 million, while Sergey Brin reportedly is purchasing a roughly US$50 million home on Biscayne Bay.

Indian Creek, which has a large golf course in the middle of the island, has become one of the most exclusive enclaves in South Florida with tight security limiting access to residents and invited guests.

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Zuckerberg has grown closer to US President Donald Trump in his second term, and has visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach on multiple occasions.

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 Brin and former Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, has raised about US$35 million. BLOOMBERG