Two years ago, Cliff Asness bought himself a little beachside getaway. And we do mean little: Immediately after extensively renovating a place he’d just spent $26 million on, the AQR founder realized that five bedrooms and 13,000 square feet in the sun simply were not enough for an investing superhero. So he put it right back on the market.
Unfortunately for Asness, would-be buyers apparently shared his assessment of the place, and were not interested at the $29.5 million asking price in COVID-infested Miami Beach, nor even at Asness’ own pre-renovation price. Also unfortunately for Asness, things have also taken a decidedly negative turn over at AQR, thanks in part to Florida itself, and with the South Florida real-estate market looking in no more danger of recovery than his hedge fund, he’s decided to take what he can get from a like-minded sort who will also undoubtedly regret the decision immediately.
Cliff Asness, the co-founder of AQR Capital Management, has sold his Miami Beach penthouse for $22 million, a significant loss from the $26 million he paid for it just two years ago…. The buyer, represented by Seth Feuer of Compass, is a private-equity executive from the Northeast who is considering relocating to Miami….
On the bright side, such as it is, it could have been, and probably will soon be, worse.
He bought the unit in 2018 from financier Boris Jordan, the onetime chief executive of the state-controlled Russian media conglomerate Gazprom-Media, The Wall Street Journal reported. Mr. Jordan had listed the unit for as much as $53 million in 2015, at the height of the Miami market…. The Miami market is facing an oversupply of product, climate change fears and cooling demand from foreign buyers, particularly from South America. “Sellers have to slash prices to get deals done,” said Peter Zalewski, a principal with Miami real estate consulting firm Condo Vultures.
Billionaire Hedge Funder Sells Miami Beach Penthouse for $22 Million [WSJ]
