A trust in Mary Montgomery’s name sold an oceanfront estate on Palm Beach’s Billionaires’ Row for $37.4 million — 19 percent below its original asking price.
An entity shielded by prominent Palm Beach attorney Maura Ziska, 1800 South Ocean LLC, picked up the 20,900-square-foot compound at 1800 South Ocean Boulevard from the Montgomery trust, controlled by Hilda Santana and Northern Trust, property records show.
The 10-bedroom mansion hit the market for $46 million in September, but was subject to court approval, according to the listing. Mary Montgomery was in the middle of a messy legal fight between her court-appointed guardians and her daughter, Courtnay Montgomery, the Palm Beach Daily News reported. The daughter lived at the estate until last spring, when she was evicted by the trustees.
Mary Montgomery, a philanthropist, built the home with her late husband Bob Montgomery, who was known for litigating State of Florida v. American Tobacco Co., which resulted in an $11.3 billion settlement to the state.
The Montgomerys paid $3.25 million for the nearly 3-acre property in 1988, property records indicate. It includes 300 feet of frontage along the Intracoastal Waterway, about 300 feet of oceanfront, two pools, a main house and guest house. The property was being marketed as a teardown and received approval from the town to demolish the Addison Mizner-designed home this week.
Premier Estate Properties’ Jim McCann, previously with Corcoran Group, was the listing agent. A. Whitney McGurk and Liza Pulitzer of Brown Harris Stevens represented the buyer. McCann and McGurk declined to comment on the buyer and their plans for the property.