The Iconic Scarface Mansion That Once Housed a US President Lists for $237 Million
There’s a house in Key Biscayne, Florida, that doesn’t just have a history, it has three separate histories, each wilder than the last.
A real cartel drug smuggler built it. A sitting U.S. President used the land it sits on. And Hollywood turned it into the most iconic crime film set of the 1980s. Now it’s listed for $237 million.
What This Place Actually Is
The property at 485 W. Matheson Drive is a 13,000 sq ft, five-bedroom waterfront estate sitting on 2.38 acres with 862 feet of direct Biscayne Bay frontage. That’s nearly three football fields of open water views with the Miami skyline right in front of you.
It has a piano-shaped swimming pool, a private marina big enough for large yachts, a presidential helipad still sitting in the bay, and the original stainless steel and glass elevator you watched in Scarface (1983). It still works. Fans ask to ride it every time they visit.
The listing is handled by Jill Eber and Judy Zeder of The Jills Zeder Group at Coldwell Banker Realty. You can see the full property details here.
Three Histories, One Address
Here’s what most outlets glossed over when they covered this story.
The house was built around 1981 by Roberto Striedinger, a pilot later convicted of smuggling cocaine for the MedellÃn drug cartel. The U.S. government seized it from him.
After that it passed to new owners, and eventually to John Devaney, the Miami-based hedge fund manager who bought it for $15 million in 2003.
Before Striedinger ever broke ground, the land itself was part of President Richard Nixon’s Winter White House compound.
Nixon visited the Key Biscayne property at least 50 times while in office. The helipad in the bay was built with roughly $400,000 of taxpayer money to handle Marine One arrivals.
Nixon’s original bungalow was demolished in the early 2000s, but the helipad stays as a listed feature.
Then in 1983, the mansion became Frank Lopez’s home in Scarface, the fictional drug lord whose empire Al Pacino’s Tony Montana destroys. The film has shaped pop culture for over 40 years. It’s not the only property that owes part of its value to a film connection.
Ariana Grande’s $22.8 million London penthouse, which doubled as a shoot location for Wicked, tells a similar story of how entertainment history adds a premium no square footage can explain.
And if you think massive privacy and historical seclusion are rare in celebrity real estate, Drew Barrymore’s $5 million Westchester estate with its private gate and 12 acres of land shows just how much the market values that kind of separation from the world.
A real drug smuggler’s house. A president’s retreat. A crime film’s centerpiece. Same address.
The Owner’s Story Is Just as Good
Devaney, founder of United Capital Markets and a Key Biscayne native, found the property mid-helicopter flying lesson in 2003.
He spotted the helipad from above, landed, walked up, knocked on the door, and made an offer the same day. He paid $15 million for the home and another $15 million for adjacent land.
He’s now listing it for $237 million. That’s a potential $207 million return if it sells at ask.
His reason for selling? “There are lots of guys looking. Let someone else take a turn, one of these real big dogs in the market.”
Why This Matters
This would be the most expensive home ever sold in Miami-Dade County history, beating Mark Zuckerberg’s $170 million Indian Creek purchase from earlier this year.
And the market backs it up. South Florida now averages one $10 million home sale per day, ranking number one nationally in the ultra-luxury segment.
In 2025, South Florida recorded 361 closed sales above $10 million, the second-highest annual total ever, with January 2026 opening with 56 contracts at the $10M+ level in just the first three weeks, the strongest January on record.
According to the MIAMI Association of Realtors, $1 million-plus home sales surged over 21% year-over-year in early 2026. Wealthy buyers keep flowing into Florida from New York, California, and internationally.
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At $18,230 per square foot, the ask is extreme. But so is the provenance. It’s not entirely different from how gated luxury homes in LA, like Malin Akerman’s $3 million Los Feliz property, command a premium simply because of who lived there and what the address represents.
Key Takeaways
This property isn’t just a listing. It’s a convergence of presidential history, a real cartel origin story, and 40 years of cultural weight.
Three legacies. One address. One price tag.
Whether it sells at $237 million or not, no other home on the market today carries this kind of story.
What’s your take? Does a property’s history actually justify a price like $237 million, or is this purely speculation? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.
Final Thoughts
Real estate like this doesn’t come around often. The Scarface mansion is part museum, part monument, part trophy home. Whoever buys it isn’t just acquiring square footage. They’re buying a piece of American history, criminal lore, and cinema in one transaction.
For more stories on iconic homes, celebrity real estate, and what’s really happening at the top end of the market, follow along on X (@buildlikenew) and join the conversation in the Build Like New Facebook group.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. All listing details, prices, and figures are sourced from publicly available information as of the publish date and are subject to change.
