An American acquires the Rockefeller estate in Saint-Barthélémy

"The sale was formalized on April 7," said adviser Douglas Foregger, president of Wimco Real Estate in Saint-Barthélemy, in a press release.

The property acquired in 1957 by David Rockefeller, grandson of the founder of the industrialist dynasty John D. Rockefeller, was bought by Adam Sinn, a 45-year-old United States national, for "approximately 136 million dollars". (124 million euros), says the American daily The Wall Street Journal, citing "a source close to the transaction".

"This is the highest real estate transaction ever recorded on the island for a single residence," commented to AFP Christian Wattiau, president of one of the main real estate agencies in Saint-Barthélémy, Sibarth Real. Estate.

This sale represents a great operation for the Territorial Collectivity of Saint-Barthélemy which will collect 5% of the amount, within the framework of the territorial legislation of the registration fees of the transaction, i.e. "a little more than 6 million euros" , told AFP its president Xavier Lédée.

The property, the largest on the island according to the management of the territory, extends over nearly 52 hectares in the district of Colombier (North-West).

David Rockefeller (who died aged 101 in 2017) called on architect Nelson W. Aldrich to design this villa, which was completed in the early 60s.

The property was first bought in the early 1990s by Steve and Linda Horn, producers of television commercials in the United States. But they had been looking for a buyer since the severe damage caused to the villa by Hurricane Irma in 2017, says Mr. Foregger.

In the press release published by Douglas Foregger, the new owner said he was "delighted to have acquired such an iconic piece of history". Adam Sinn assures that "at the moment, there are no plans other than the desire to restore the property to its glory of the Rockefeller years", according to the press release.

Since the vote of a new local regulation in December 2020, "the property is located in a natural area. If certain developments are possible, they are only on minimal surfaces. Precisely so that it is not made just any what”, explained to AFP the director of the Territorial Agency for the Environment of Saint-Barth, Sébastien Gréaux.