Financier and Palm Beach real estate investor Steven K. Hudson has paid a recorded $15.8 million for a recently completed house on one of Palm Beach’s famous “Sea” streets in Midtown.
Hudson bought the five-bedroom house at 350 Seabreeze Ave. from the couple who built it, Justin and Meira Besikof of Wayzata, Minnesota, the deed recorded May 7 shows. The Besikofs have built, renovated and sold other properties in Palm Beach.
The house stands on a lot measuring a fifth of an acre, two properties east of Cocoanut Row and three blocks north of Royal Palm Way. Seabreeze Avenue and its neighboring streets — Seaview and Seapray avenues — are among the oldest platted thoroughfares in town.
The two-story, Mediterranean-style house was completed in March, town records show. New houses are in demand in Palm Beach, especially those in the heart of town.
The house has 4,936 square feet of living space, according to the sales description prepared by agent Chris Leavitt of Douglas Elliman Real Estate and Justin Besikof, who co-listed the property through his company, Besikof Realty PB. They had listed the house in mid-January, and it was priced at $16.895 million when it sold.
The Besikofs paid $7 million for the property in December 2023 in a deal handled on both sides by broker Linda Olsson of Linda R. Olsson Inc. The buyers then knocked down a 1980s-era house there to accommodate the one they just sold.
The house has traditional Mediterranean-style elements, including a painted stucco exterior, arched windows, cast-stone details and a red barrel-tile roof. Among the front facade’s fetures is a traditional-style single-car-width portico with a sundeck above it. In all, the residence has about 600 feet of balconies, according to the plans drawn up by architect Patrick Segrave of SKA Architect + Planner in Palm Beach.
Justin Besikof founded and is president of Madeira Partners LLC, a mergers-and-acquisitions advisory company. His wife works for a nonprofit agency.
Hudson is CEO of ECN Capital, a Toronto-headquartered company that provides “prime credit portfolios” to more than 90 U.S. financial institutions, according to its website. The company specializes in offering business services to North American-based partners, including institutional investors, insurance companies, pension plans, banks and credit unions. The company’s U.S. office is in West Palm Beach.
Leavitt and Justin Besikof declined to discuss the transaction on Seabreeze Avenue, and Hudson could not be reached for comment.
The sales listing mentions an expansive primary bedroom suite with dual bathrooms and closets. The kitchen features rift white-oak cabintetry with high-end appliances and Calacatta gold marble counters. Floors are covered in Bulgarian limestone and European white oak.
At the rear of the house is a poolside covered loggia, a whirlpool spa, an awning-shaded patio and a barbecue grill.
The design of the house was approved in January 2023 by the Architectural Commmission. The design had won the endorsement of several residents who live on the Sea streets — a key moment for the Besikofs. Neighbors can be fiercely protective of the streets’ architectural fabric and often slam new designs as being too large or inharmonious with nearby homes.
The architectural board approved the design in a 6-1 vote.
The Besikofs bought the property from Judy Goodman, who had shared the since-demolished four-bedroom house there with her late husband, Dr. J. John Goodman. That house was built in 1982.
The Besikofs’ other Palm Beach real estate projects include the extensive remodeling of a landmarked house at 360 Seaspray Ave., which they sold in January for $8.5 million. Besikof Realty PB was the only agency involved in that sale, according to the multiple listing service.
Hudson’s most recent real estate transaction in Palm Beach was a flip involving a never-lived-in house he bought for $19 million in December and then sold for $21.75 million in March at 433 Antigua Lane. Leavitt acted on behalf of Hudson in the latest transaction on Antigua Lane. On the buyer’s side of that deal was Corcoran Group agent Jennifer Hyland, with agent Casey Flannery of Equestrian Sotheby’s International Realty also playing a role.
Darrell Hofheinz is a USA TODAY Network of Florida journalist who writes about Palm Beach real estate in his weekly “Beyond the Hedges” column. He welcomes tips about real estate news on the island. Email dhofheinz@pbdailynews.com, call 561-820-3831 or tweet @PBDN_Hofheinz. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Never-lived-in house fetches $15.8 million in Midtown Palm Beach
Reporting by Darrell Hofheinz, Palm Beach Daily News / Palm Beach Daily News
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