American billionaires who have moved into the Miami’s most exclusive island are said to be pushing out the millionaire locals.
The village overlooking Biscayne Bay is famously known as ‘Billionaire Bunker’ thanks to its mega rich residents, which are a mix of celebrities and business moguls.
Jeff Bezos owns multiple properties on the island of Indian Creek, alongside retired NFL star Tom Brady and former First Daughter Ivanka Trump.
The Amazon billionaire, who is the third richest person in the world, is looking to buy a further three homes on the island, according to Bloomberg
One local historian also told the outlet that those who had previously lived on the island can no longer afford to, with billionaires now being the only ones who can afford to live there.
Indian Creek island, overlooking Biscayne Bay, is famously known as ‘Billionaire Bunker’ thanks to its mega rich residents
Jeff Bezos, seen here with partner Lauren Sanchez, is reportedly looking to buy a further three homes on the island
Bezos bought a three-bedroom property on Indian Creek for $68 million in June
The Amazon founder also scooped up his neighbor’s mansion for $79 million in October
Local historian Paul George, who works at the HistoryMiami Museum, said: ‘Only the very wealthy, the billionaires can afford to live in Indian Creek now. Hundreds of millions aren’t gonna cut it anymore.’
Architect Kobi Karp told Bloomberg that the biggest draw of the island is the privacy it provides for occupants.
‘In other neighborhoods, I can come in if I want to serve you papers or harass you or take photographs of you. Some people don’t like that at all’, Karp said.
Dina Goldentayer, who has been involved with multiple sales in the Indian Creek Village, told Bloomberg of the enclave’s rapid rise in affluence.
Goldentayer told the outlet that prices for homes renovated to the standards of billionaires will soon rise to start at nine figures.
‘This is all post-Covid, and it was was actually quite different before, there would be five or six listings at the same time and $20 million was a big sale’, she said.
According to Bloomberg, representatives for Bezos have now reached out to at least three other homeowners on the island about purchasing their properties.
Bezos previously bought two neighboring homes on the island for a total of nearly $150 million last year.
Bezos owns multiple properties on the island of Indian Creek, alongside retired NFL star Tom Brady and former First Daughter Ivanka Trump
The privately owned residential enclave has been a magnet for billionaires, celebrities, and power couples thanks to its privacy and security
The three-bedroom property on the man-made barrier Island sits on 2.8 acres and was built in 1965.
It was previously owned by a company with ties to Panama called MTM Star International, which obtained it for $1.4 million in 1982.
Bezos then scooped up his neighbor’s mansion for $79 million in October of last year, which is set across 19,064 square feet and includes seven bedrooms.
The enclave has become a hot spot for the rich and powerful, who are attracted by its plush homes and enhanced security.
The island is only accessible by a single, guarded bridge and is protected by a private police force that patrols the community around-the-clock by foot, sky, and land.
Residents enjoy access to an exclusive country club and private 18 hole golf course while Miami’s South Beach is just eight miles away.
With a median house price of $29.5million and around 40 residents, Indian Creek has been branded ‘the world’s most exclusive municipality’.
Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner purchased a fixer-upper property from Spanish singer Julio Iglesias
Kushner and Trump purchased their home for $24 million in April 2021 and spent more than two years renovating it
Ivanka and Jared are pictured here alongside their family at their home on the island
The area has previously attracted the likes of Jay-Z and Beyoncé, as well as current residents investor Carl Icahn and Jared Kushner.
Kushner and former First Daughter Ivanka Trump purchased their home for $24 million in April 2021 and spent more than two years renovating it.
Carl Icahn reportedly purchased his mansion in 1997 for $7.5 million, while Colombian banker Jaime Gilinski assembled five properties to build his family a compound.
Football star Tom Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bündchen were also building an ‘eco-mansion’ in the community prior to their split.
Despite parting ways, the former power couple happen to live just a stone’s throw away from one another.
The former couple bought a $17 million mansion on this island in October 2020 with plans to build an eco-friendly dream home
Tom has held onto the $17million mega mansion he and Gisele purchased in 2020 with the intent of spending the rest of their lives under one roof
Gisele snapped up a fixer-upper across the water from Tom for $11.5million that summer, seen here
It was previously reported that shortly after the news of their divorce that Gisele had snapped up a fixer-upper across the water from Tom for $11.5 million that summer.
The NFL star and model planned on building an eco-friendly forever home for themselves and their three children in the exclusive village.
Brady has a son, Benjamin, and a daughter, Vivian, with Bündchen, as well as an older son, John Edward, with his ex Bridget Moynahan.
The former couple demolished the pre-existing 5,772-square-foot home on the lot, but construction halted last year following their split.
Spanish singer Julio Iglesias has been a longtime resident of the island and owns multiple properties, having moved there in the 1970s.
The star was at the height of his career when he made Miami his official home and purchased an Indian Creek Island mansion for around $650,000 in 1979.
Iglesias also acquired a total of four contiguous waterfront lots on the island that totaled approximately eight acres.
Billionaire Carl Icahn, pictured here in 2016, reportedly purchased his mansion on the island in 1997 for $7.5 million
Iglesias, seen here performing in Monaco, has been a long term resident of the island after moving in the 1970s
The Spanish singer acquired a total of four contiguous waterfront lots that totaled approximately eight acres before selling one to Trump and Kushner
In 2017, he listed the lots for a total of $150 million before taking them off the market the following year.
Iglesias later tried a different approach and listed just one 80,000 square-feet lot — 4 Indian Creek Island Road — for $31.8 million at the end of 2020.
A few months later, it was scooped up by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.
Florida is among nine states in the country that does not have capital gains or state income tax.
In recent times, millionaires and billionaires have been flocking to the state to escape high-tax and Democrat-run states like California and New York.