Farrell Estates Lands $49 Million Construction Loan for 27 Homes at Palm Beach Polo in Wellington, Florida
JLL Capital Markets arranged $49 million in construction financing for Farrell Estates, a community of 27 homes planned on the former East Course at Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in Wellington, Florida. The course closed in 2000. Investors have sued, and the developer has denied misusing funds.
JLL Capital Markets announced on October 13 that it had arranged $49 million in construction financing for Farrell Estates, a planned community of 27 ultra-luxury single-family homes on the former East Course inside the gated Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in Wellington, Florida, in Palm Beach County. The announcement came roughly two months after the loan closed. The closing date of August 14 appears in a transaction record on Traded.
No new golf course is part of the plan. Houses will occupy ground that has remained out of play for more than twenty years. The East Course has been closed since 2000, The Real Deal reported, and Farrell Companies, the firm led by the developer Joe Farrell, bought the land for $12.6 million in 2023 from Glenn Straub, the club’s owner. The parcel will now support 27 large custom homes inside a club that, according to JLL, already has two 18-hole championship golf courses, multiple polo fields, and a clubhouse. JLL notes that recent home sales in the community have exceeded $16 million.
JLL represented the borrower, Farrell Companies, in placing the loan with Maxim Capital Group. Senior Managing Director Brian Gaswirth, Managing Director Max La Cava, and Director Pier Barinci handled the assignment for JLL. According to The Real Deal, the funds come from a facility of up to $98 million, with about half of that amount drawn. “We saw significant interest from institutional lenders given the sponsor’s proven track record and the property’s location in one of Palm Beach County’s most coveted communities,” La Cava said in JLL’s announcement.
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The site measures 23 acres in JLL’s description, which also outlines two-story homes of 5,300 to 8,900 square feet that include oversized garages, private golf cart bays, and outdoor entertainment areas. A somewhat different range appears on the developer’s website, which describes 27 custom homes of roughly 5,900 to 8,000-plus square feet with five to nine-plus bedrooms, priced from about $5 million to more than $10 million, and available as custom or spec homes. “The developer has commenced construction with a final build out anticipated for September 2029,” JLL said. No architect has been named publicly, and no sales have been reported.
Litigation has accompanied the project. Investors sued in March, alleging that funds were misused or diverted and that an environmental problem on the site was exaggerated or invented, The Real Deal reported. The same suit alleged that Farrell rejected a $50 million construction loan and demanded another $25 million from investors. A second suit naming Farrell individually was filed in late August. Responding to the first suit in May, Farrell told The Real Deal, “I take other people’s money very seriously, and not a penny was misallocated or used for any other job.” The American Developer also covered the mortgage and the lawsuits. The status of the cases since August has not been reported.
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Farrell Companies, which JLL says has spent nearly three decades building luxury homes, now also works in multifamily rentals and commercial, industrial, and storage properties. Farrell has been active elsewhere in the county, selling a Manalapan mansion for $55.5 million in 2025 and a Lantana waterfront home for $17.5 million in April, The Real Deal reported. Farrell Estates adds to a run of South Florida golf real estate and club spending that includes The Residences at The Boca Raton, which brings golf-resort condominiums to Boca Raton, Florida, and Gleneagles Country Club in Delray Beach, Florida, which has approved a $54 million clubhouse renovation.
A course dormant since 2000, inside a working polo and golf club, is becoming 27 large custom homes of up to 8,900 square feet by JLL’s count, with financing arranged and construction under way. Suits were filed in March and late August, and no resolution has been reported.
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