Larry Ellison, the billionaire founder of Oracle, is ditching his newly acquired Palm Beach mansion to stay full-time in high-tax Hawaii.
Of course, given that he owns almost all of the island, it must certainly feel like home.
In 2012, Ellison bought 98% of the island for $300 million, according to Forbes. He owns roughly 87,000 of the island’s 90,000 acres and it’s got a small town vibe; there are just 3200 residents.
So much for the $80 million Palm Beach (no income tax!) paradise in Florida. Despite paying so much for the reported 15,000 square foot home in South Florida, Recode reports that Ellison is “tearing the house down, and not moving to Florida.”
So, there!
Ellison’s newly acquired (not to be lived in) home in Palm Beach sits on more than 7 acres, making it one of the largest oceanfront parcels in the Palm Beach County. The “Tuscan style” home belonged to the hedge fund manager Gabe Hoffman and comes with seven bedrooms and 11 bathrooms, plus three half-baths. It’s also got the swimming pool, tennis court and…all that jazz.
Nonetheless, Ellison is allegedly tearing it down because, as he told employees in an email, “I love it here and have no plans to move back to Florida, to Texas, back to California…or anywhere else.”
The billionaire tech mogul is deciding to stay put on the island of Lana’i in Hawaii and to continue using the “power of Zoom to work full-time from the island” (as he promised employees in an email last year when coronavirus first broke out.)
We applaud Larry Ellison for living his life however he sees fit. Though he sure could have saved a bundle on his taxes in Florida. Sometimes though, when you’re that rich? Taxes may not longer matter.
