Mar-a-Lago, once Donald Trump’s longtime winter getaway spot, became the center of his political operation after he left office in 2021—a designation insiders say won’t change as he’s now headed back to the White House for another four years. The estate spans 17 acres on the southeast Florida coast, nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Worth Lagoon. Its dual waterfronts are what earned it its moniker—which translates to “sea-to-lake” in Spanish—when it was built during Florida’s real estate boom in the 1920s.
Trump purchased the property six decades later, in 1985, just after U.S. lawmakers determined it was too expensive to maintain as a potential “winter White House,” as its original owner hoped it would be used.
Now, however, it appears the elite members-only club is poised to become an oceanfront White House of sorts after Trump’s election win this week. ADVERTISEMENT Below is a look at Mar-a-Lago in its current state, as both Trump’s home and political epicenter. New members wanting to join Mar-a-Lago’s club have to shell out an eye-popping $1 million initiation fee if they want to rub shoulders with the president-elect, the club’s manager, Bernd Lembcke, told Bloomberg this summer.
That’s a $300,000 increase from its fee at the start 2024. Lembcke explained that the price hike came down to supply and demand, with only a handful of spots available to keep the exclusive club under its strict cap of 500 total members. Perhaps the risi.
