A Tropical ‘Indoor-Outdoor Home’ On A Private Island in Miami Beach

It is hard to picture a suitable place for living out the Miami Beach dream than this—a slick, glass-walled modern home, surrounded by palm trees and seemingly floating on water, set on its own private island with 110 feet of waterfront.

Recently built and completed in October 2016, its design, by Choeff Levy Fischman Architecture + Design, is what really sets it apart. Walls completely retract, including at the corners, where there are no supporting columns. The effect, said agent Jeri Jenkins of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, is the ultimate “tropical indoor-outdoor home” where you can enjoy the sunshine even while you are having a bath, or cooking your breakfast.

Stats

The house, located on Allison Island, stands at 10,632 square feet, with seven bedrooms and 10 bathrooms. The master bedrooms and his-and-her bathroom suites make up 2,400 square feet alone, including huge walk-in closets.

Design pedigree

The architects wanted to blur the line between interior and exterior, and the house opens out onto an atrium with two 24-foot living walls.

To enter into the house through the main entrance, you must step over two blocks of concrete suspended over water; cantilevered levels of the house appear to hover over one another, and the infinity pool looks as if it spills into the waterway. You can see the water from most of rooms, through floor-to-ceiling glass walls that at the back of the house recess completely away.

Also worth noting, according to Ms. Jenkins, the house has been built to face west so you can watch the sunset every evening, a prerequisite for many Miami home buyers, she said.

The current owner wanted the house, which comes fully furnished, to reflect an Italian style, and it includes handmade leather furniture where even the stitching has been carefully considered. The furniture was sent over in a container from Europe.

Custom cabinetry features dark, tropical Ipe wood, the kitchen has white oak cabinets made by Dolce Vita. All the carpentry is by Italians, who were flown over to work on  the house for months.

Amenities

Outside is the 55-foot infinity pool, an outdoor cabana and summer kitchen, with built-in barbecue.

Downstairs, there’s a wine cellar suited to those who take their collection seriously; it’s kept in the right light conditions for optimum storage, with racks at an angle.

There are more fridges for drinks in the theater room, and a three-car garage, though the ceiling is high enough to install an elevator and expand the garage to house five.

Talking point

The price, at just under $20 million, is good value for this size of plot in Miami Beach, said Ms. Jenkins, particularly with this much waterfront. She has 26 properties on the market, all for over $20 million dollars. This one recently had its price cut by $4 million.

The house is also set on a protected waterway, meaning a serious boater or owner with a big yacht can keep it outside their home without it being “beaten up,” which can be the case in a busy, wide-bay location.

Neighborhood Notes

There are only two private islands in Miami Beach that have no interior homes (meaning all mansions are built on the waterfront)—Allison Island being one of them. It is popular with families, with excellent private schools nearby. It’s secure and quiet, away from the busy traffic. Plus being only two blocks from the ocean, you can walk for a swim in no time. “You don’t get much better than that,” said Ms. Jenkins.

Agent: Jeri Jenkins, Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate