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A lavish Anna Maria beachfront estate sold for $16 million Feb. 22, breaking the all-time residential sale record for Manatee County of $13 million for a Longboat Key home sale in July 2020.
Listing agent Charles Buky said the appeal of Anna Maria was as important to the buyer as the mansion itself.
“At this price point, you have to sell not only the house but the community,” Buky said Feb. 23.
The Coldwell Banker agent accompanied the showings of the custom-built in 2020 five-bedroom, six-bathroom estate at 100 Beach Ave.
Buky said he treated the buyers — of Colorado — to lunch at the Waterfront Restaurant before touring the Anna Maria area, including stops at some Pine Avenue boutiques, the Anna Maria City Pier, the Center of Anna Maria Island and the Holmes Beach dog park.
The 7,500-square-foot gated home is on a 1.26-acre lot, unusually large for Anna Maria, affording new owners a sense of privacy and tranquility, Buky said.
An open floor plan, large kitchen and 180-degree beachfront views were other factors that influenced the buyers to sign.
The mansion boasts a gourmet kitchen and wet bar, a primary suite with spa-style bathroom and laundry, a game room, a partially-covered swimming pool, a spa and elevator, as well as a seven-car garage.
The builder/seller was Joseph Acebal, a chiropractor and founder of Ideal Image, a chain of med-spa aesthetic clinics he co-owned and sold in 2011 for $175 million.
Neither Acebal nor the buyer agreed to speak with The Islander about the transaction.
Buky — who manages a four-person realty team with his father, Gabe Buky — said the record-setting sale was further proof of the strength of the island market.
“The demand for this area, it’s not stopping. It’s moving upward,” Buky said.
Also, due to the property’s large lot size, the island native said he doesn’t think the record will be topped in the near future.
“I think it will be beat, of course, like all records. But right now it’s tough in the short term, because that type of property doesn’t exist,” he said.
According to Charles Buky, a home sale at 6021 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key, was previously the highest sale for a residential property in Manatee County at $13 million. The home sold July 7, 2020. The highest on AMI was 825 N. Shore Drive, Anna Maria, which sold for $9 million Feb. 1.