Mandarin Oriental Residences West Palm Beach vs New York: what the same money buys

New York residency follows the apartment and the day count

Income tax usually decides the move. For 2025, New York State's top rate is 10.9 percent on taxable income above $25 million for joint filers. New York City's resident rate reaches 3.876 percent above $90,000. Combined, the top marginal rate is 14.776 percent, about $147,760 on every $1 million taxed at those rates. Florida's constitution prohibits a state income tax on individuals.

A Florida purchase does not by itself end New York residency. Under the statutory residency test, a person who keeps a permanent place of abode in New York and spends more than 183 days there is taxed as a resident, regardless of domicile. The Court of Appeals in Gaied in 2014 required the abode to serve as the taxpayer's residence.

Keeping the Manhattan apartment while counting days is planning work for an accountant rather than a broker. On the Florida side, an owner who makes the residence a permanent home by January 1 qualifies for the homestead exemption under section 196.031. The Save Our Homes cap then limits annual assessment growth to 3 percent. Non-homestead property is capped at 10 percent and resets on sale.

Carrying costs at Mandarin Oriental Residences West Palm Beach and 685 Fifth Avenue

The monthly carry runs against the space advantage. Residence 17A at 685 Fifth lists common charges of $4,833 and real estate taxes of $2,594 a month, about $89,100 a year or $5.70 a square foot monthly. The tax line is low relative to price, at about $31,100 a year on an $8.8 million ask.

West Palm Beach taxes are not low. The 2025 stack on North Flagler Drive is 20.4468 mills, so a $3.5 million residence assessed at full value pays about $71,600 a year before homestead. An $8.8 million residence pays about $179,900.

Dues are known only from one brokerage page, which shows about $2.66 a square foot a month for a residence it does not name. At that rate a 4,900-square-foot home would carry roughly $13,000 a month in dues plus about $15,000 in tax. The developer's estimated budget is the number to request.

Closing costs move the other way. New York charges the buyer a mansion tax of 1 percent from $1 million and a city supplemental tax of 0.25 to 2.9 percent from $2 million. New-development buyers are customarily asked to pay the sponsor's transfer taxes, including the city's 1.425 percent residential rate above $500,000. Florida charges deed stamps of 70 cents per $100, which developer contracts typically shift to the buyer.

Delivery at 5400 North Flagler is years away and the deposit terms carry the risk

The West Palm Beach tower is early. On September 29, 2025 the City Commission approved a 31-story, 380-foot, 97-unit project after staff had recommended denying one waiver. It is now marketed with 87 residences. Groundbreaking is anticipated in 2027, and completion dates range from 2029 to 2031 depending on the source.

The 685 Fifth building, by contrast, can be inspected today. Two precedents bear on the Florida purchase. The Palm Beach Post noted repeated completion delays and buyer deposit lawsuits at Mandarin Oriental's Boca Raton residences. Stet News reported that residents of Great Gulf's La Clara at 1515 South Flagler sued over alleged construction failures.

Neither report settles an outcome here. Both justify a close reading of the deposit terms. Brokers report 10 percent at reservation, 10 percent at contract, 10 percent at groundbreaking, 10 percent at the 15th floor and 60 percent at closing.

Section 718.202 governs how deposits above 10 percent may be used, and section 718.503 gives a 15-day cancellation right after signing or receipt of the documents. The site is in FEMA Zone X shaded, outside the special flood hazard area.

The West Palm Beach residence suits a buyer ready to change domicile

The West Palm Beach residence suits a New York buyer who intends to change domicile and can wait for delivery, in exchange for a full-size family home on the water with private dockage. The Fifth Avenue building suits a buyer who needs a furnished city base now, will remain a New York taxpayer regardless and values a lower monthly carry.

For a household that will split time, days in New York and taxable income settle the comparison more than price per foot. An advisor can arrange a private presentation at the Worth Avenue sales gallery for the West Palm Beach tower.