Dear Mr. Zuckerberg, 

Hey, neighbor! Welcome to Miami!

Or, more specifically, welcome to Indian Creek Island — the ultra-exclusive spit of land in Biscayne Bay better known as the “Billionaire Bunker.” Everyone’s focused on how you paid $170 million for 1.84 acres, but, regardless, you’ll quickly fold into the mix.

The welcoming committee here includes Jeff Bezos, who owns multiple homes down the street. Larry Page just scooped up a property nearby. And the HOA president Ken Griffin has been assembling hundreds of millions of dollars worth of land across the region.

We know you helped invent Facebook, but you’re next in line in Miami. What’s happening now isn’t just another real estate cycle. It’s a land rush where other tech founders, hedge fund titans and private equity barons are battling over any scraps of waterfront land available across Miami Beach and Palm Beach County.

And the developers here are racing to keep up. You know Jorge Pérez and the Related Group — they closed $2 billion in condo sales last year while continuing to push luxury towers across Miami’s skyline. But have you heard of Oak Row Equities? They more recently burst onto the scene with the largest land deal in Miami history, and now Oak Row has billions of dollars of mixed-use development underway across the city. 

There’s always David Martin and Terra. That firm keeps stacking record financings and megaprojects from Coconut Grove to Miami Beach, including the long-awaited Grand Hyatt convention center hotel that’s set to reshape the convention business in South Florida. 

But the lenders here are the real workhorses. Madison Realty Capital just put up $630 million for a Bentley-branded condo tower project in Sunny Isles Beach. Ares helped lead a $772 million financing package for Related Ross’ office towers in West Palm Beach — reportedly the largest development loan ever recorded in Florida.

Which brings us to the West Palm Beach “dilemma.” Miami is Miami, but the guy who runs South Florida like you ran Silicon Valley turned this place into something that increasingly resembles Wall Street with palm trees. (Hint: His name rhymes with “boss.”) 

Oh, yeah, you also may have noticed the state income tax here is exactly zero. We’re checking with my accountant, but we think that’s better than California and that state’s proposal to chop 5 percent off the top.

See you at the dock. Meanwhile, check out our Power South Florida 2026. It’ll do wonders for small talk with the neighbors. 

Sincerely, 

Commercial Observer Editorial Staff

This package was written by Tom Acitelli, Gregory Cornfield, Andrew Coen, Cathy Cunningham, Isabelle Durso, Julia Echikson, Max Gross, Mark Hallum, Brian Pascus, Amanda Schiavo and Nick Trombola. Acitelli and Gross edited it. Skip Card copy-edited it, and Jim Sewastynowicz edited the photography with Emily Assiran. Jeff Cuyubamba laid it out.