From the Sebastian Inlet to the St. Lucie County line, the ultraluxury end of 32963’s real estate market has fallen into a Sleeping Beauty-type slumber – except in John’s Island.

Outside of JI, there’s been a grand total of one sale over $10 million so far this year, an oceanfront home in Windsor that went for $15 million.

Inside the gates of the island’s dominant country club community, seven homes over $10 million with a combined value of $96 million have closed or are pending so far in 2025, according to John’s Island Real Estate broker Bob Gibb and public records.

“We have seen a real burst of activity in the past six months,” Mandy Robinson, John’s Island Real Estate director of marketing, tells Vero Beach 32963.

That burst included five closed sales, ranging from $10,250,000 million to $18 million, and two more pending sales, with four homes going under contract the day they hit the market. All the closed sales are waterfront, with one on the ocean and four on the river.

The highest priced home, listed for $17 million, quickly got three offers, and closed this month for $18 million, setting a sales price record for riverfront property in the community.

“We had a record sale on the riverfront last year in December, and this latest sale broke that record,” says Robinson, giving a sense of the market’s momentum.

Gibb and Robinson say ultraluxury buyers have been a mix of JI residents relocating within the community and new arrivals, who have come from locations across the nation.

“It is a real misnomer that all of our buyers are from the northeast,” says Robinson. “We are seeing growth in different pockets all across the country – people discovering John’s Island and finding their special place here.”

Pulling back to look at the whole island, there are 16 ultraluxury homes on the market, with list prices ranging from $10.5 million to $39 million, but only one has sold in 32963 so far this year.

That 12,300-square-foot oceanfront home in Windsor – another elite country club community – was put on the market in January 2024 by novelist and former hedge fund executive Jay Newman, author of 2022 New York Times best seller “Undermoney.”

Newman started out asking $22 million and ended up selling for $15 million in April, a substantial reduction but still almost twice the $8 million he paid for the 1.3-acre property four years ago, in April 2021.

There was also a sort of honorary second ultraluxury sale outside of JI in March that can legitimately be included in a look at the 32963 market.

6600 North Highway A1A is a quarter mile south of the St. Lucie County line, but it was designed by well known island architect Tom Hoos and built by Joe Foglia, who has built several of the most magnificent homes in 32963.

It was listed by ONE Sotheby’s agent Sandra Alexander and sold by Douglas Elliman broker associate Sally Daley, making it a part of the 32963 market despite its ZIP code. But those two were it for the island outside of JI, and brokers mostly agree that economic uncertainty is the poison apple that has put the high-end market to sleep.

“People who buy homes for $10 million or more are totally discretionary buyers,” says Buzz MacWilliam, owner/broker of AMAC Alex MacWilliam, Inc., the oldest and one of the largest brokerages on the barrier island.

“They already have a place to live, or a couple of places, and right now they are taking a wait and see approach, holding off before making a major second or third home purchase until they see what happens.

“The most active part of the market right now countywide is under a million. People who really want and need a roof over their heads are the buyers.”

Despite that trend, there is some almost mystical attraction that has made John’s Island resistant to the slowdown.

Gibb says wealthy buyers continue to pull the trigger on deals in the community because of “the people and the amenities,” which include three golf courses, the whole array of racquet and lawn sports, big, beautiful clubhouses on the ocean and inland, and just about anything else a top-notch country club community can offer – including club membership, which is increasingly difficult to attain.

Most island clubs have long waiting lists but someone who buys in John’s Island can join the club immediately in most cases, although there is an approval process.

“There’s no doubt there is a strong lifestyle appeal at John’s Island and a terrific mid-Island location as well that provides value support that commands a premium price compared to outside of the gates,” says Daley.

“Lifestyle and ‘experience’ have become the definition of luxury, and the inability for buyers to gain immediate access to clubs like Quail Valley and The Moorings that don’t have a real estate requirement has been driving purchase decisions in John’s island.”

Gibb says the differential between John’s Island and places outside the gate will continue to grow in coming years, as an increasing population makes the limited buying opportunities more compelling.

“You can’t replicate John’s Island today, with three miles on the ocean, extensive riverfront, three golf courses and everything else we have. It is no longer possible to create something like this.

“Just look at what is happening at Apogee and Atlantic Fields down in Palm Beach. It’s a million dollars to get in and they are miles from the ocean.”

Multiple press accounts back up Gibb’s assessment, with reports of million-dollar initiation fees and golf commentators talking about how undistinguished the locations of the new “luxury” clubs are.

The theme of country club appeal translating to real estate success is bolstered by sales this year at Windsor and Orchid Island, where club membership comes along with property ownership.

While prices have risen to the level of ultraluxury in only one instance, multimillion-dollar sales have been brisk.

Since Jan. 1, there have been eight sales in Windsor that are recorded in county property records, in addition to the $15 million deal on the oceanfront. The properties closed for prices ranging from $3.8 million to $8.25 million and include six homes that sold for more than $5 million.

Next door at Orchid Island Golf & Beach Club, another idyllic country club community with abundant first-class amenities in a beautiful waterside location, 11 homes have sold for prices ranging from $2 million to $4.9 million.

Sales below $10 million have been strong in John’s Island, too, with 11 homes in the $6 million to $9 million range under contract in the past year, since July 2024, according to Robinson.

For buyers whose hearts are set on an ultraluxury home in an elite country club enclave, four $10-million-plus properties are still available in John’s Island.

They include a world-class, $60-million, design-build package on the ocean, another oceanfront priced at $12.9 million, an $11.9-million golf course home under construction, and an $11.8-million riverfront estate – plus another riverfront that misses ultraluxury by an inch, offered at $9.85 million.