Palm Beach is often compared to Manalapan, its little sister to the south, where a number of waterfront properties have changed hands over the past several months.
The amount of residential estate in the tiny town always reminds me of Spencer Tracy’s famous description of Katharine Hepburn’s spare figure: “Not much meat on her,” Tracy said, “but what there is, is choice.”
With that in mind, compare the 2011 “average estimated market value per parcel” for single-family houses in Manalapan to those in Palm Beach, as listed by Palm Beach County Property Appraiser Gary Nikolits’ office in the latest tax rolls.
Palm Beach has 2,264 single-family parcels with an average value of $3.81 million, according to figures compiled by John O. Thomas, the county’s director of residential appraisal services.
But the single-family values in Manalapan are right on Palm Beach’s heels, even if the total number of houses there is far smaller. With just 180 parcels, Manalapan — where the vast majority of the properties face the ocean or the lake — has an average value of $3.37 million.
No real surprise here, but Palm Beach and Manalapan also hold the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively, as home to the highest average market values per parcel among all towns in the county. And the five municipalities that follow them on the list also are confined to barrier islands: Gulf Stream, with 310 single-family parcels and an average value of $1.93 million; Highland Beach, (258 parcels with an average value of $1.78 million); South Palm Beach (four parcels with an average value of $1.16 million); Jupiter Inlet Colony (232 parcels with an average value of $1.14 million); and Ocean Ridge (489 parcels with an average value of $914,497).
Sharp eyes will notice that larger towns with high-end coastal areas such as Jupiter, Boca Raton and Riviera Beach’s Singer Island didn’t earn a spot at the top of the list. That’s because their city boundaries extend west of the Intracoastal Waterway, where lower parcel values bring the averages down.
The figures, by the way, are based on the market values assigned to the parcels on Jan. 1 of this year and apply only to single-family houses.
“Condos and other residential housing, duplexes, townhouses, etc. were excluded from the data,” explains Thomas.
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Agents on the move — Two new agents recently joined the roster at Linda A. Gary Real Estate’s Worth Avenue offices.
Ashley Copeland moved from Brown Harris Stevens, where she was the listing agent for the condominium at The Southlake bought last year by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and his wife, Judith. The former owner of an interior decorating studio on Palm Beach, Copeland has also bought and renovated properties in London. Her latest listings include a four-bedroom direct-lakefront home for $3.4 million at 1515 Lands End Road on Point Manalapan.
A 20-year veteran of residential real estate sales, M. Alison Newton moved to the agency from Fite Shavell Associates. The founder of a real estate agency in New York City, Newton has specialized in Palm Beach condominium sales and also helped interior decorator Nancy Corzine open retail stores, since closed, in Palm Beach and Southampton, N.Y.
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New agent, listing — Newly licensed real estate agent Catherine Stewart has been added to the sales team at Sotheby’s International Realty. Stewart has also listed with the agency a Palm Beach house she owns with her husband, Andrew, at 265 Atlantic Ave.
A longtime Palm Beacher, Stewart oversaw the renovation of the 1927 home, which features mahogany floors, an eat-in kitchen and an outdoor loggia among its details. The four-bedroom, three-bath house is available for lease at $15,000 a month or for sale at $2.395 million.
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Calling all Realtors! — President-elect Bradford P. Miller of the Palm Beach Board of Realtors is soliciting members of the organization to serve on a number of committees for 2012. The committees will tackle issues such as education, governmental affairs, the board’s multiple listing service and member events. They will begin meeting in January. For details, call 659-3810.
Meanwhile, tickets are sold out for the organization’s annual holiday luncheon on Dec. 14 in the newly redecorated Leopard Lounge at The Chesterfield.
Miller and the rest of group’s 2012 officers and directors will be sworn in at the gathering.
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Darrell Hofheinz writes about real estate and edits Home Loggia. He welcomes news items about Palm Beach real estate for this column. E-mail dhofheinz@pbdailynews or call 820-3831.