Former CIA director William Casey’s North End house sells for $6.8M
Bernadette Casey Smith, daughter of the late former CIA director William Casey, has sold Estrella del Mar, her family’s North End oceanfront house at
The buyers are
Estrella del Mar was most recently listed for $8.5 million. The 10,000-square-foot Spanish-style main house is situated on nearly one acre across from the ocean. A beach cabana is included on an additional direct oceanfront parcel. The eight-bedroom compound included a guest house and a two-bedroom staff suite.
Elizabeth Cleckner and John Pangborn, associates with Corcoran Palm Beach, represented the seller along with Mary Ann Cleckner, a broker with Real Property Palm Beach, as referring broker. Crissy Poorman, an agent with Sotheby’s International Realty represented the buyer.
“It is a wonderful buy and a great value. Both John Pangborn and I have been working with quite a few buyers who sense the market has now bottomed out,” said Elizabeth Cleckner.
The eclectic Spanish-style house is believed to have been built in 1925 by Gene Bartholomew for L. Wertheimer and Jeannette Gais; two years later, architect John Volk made additions.
During the 1950s, John Stetson designed additions for Standard Oil heir and Manalapan Club founder W.E. Benjamin. William and Sophia Casey bought the house in 1977, using it as a winter vacation house.
After serving as Ronald Reagan’s campaign manager, the president appointed William Casey director of the Central Intelligence Agency in 1981, serving until his death in 1987. His widow, Sophia, continued the family’s seasonal stays in
The Caseys’ daughter, Bernadette Casey Smith, inherited the property in 2000, placing it on the market in 2007.