Former home of South Beach investor and playboy Thomas Kramer sells for $33 million - $7m less than the asking price

  • Former Wall Street commodities trader Thomas Kramer owned the two adjacent properties on Star Island 
  • He made a fortune investing in a run down part of Miami Beach but lost a legal battle with his in-laws  
  • Kramer, from Germany, was declared bankrupt and forced to hand over his properties to his creditors 
  • Contents including a red-lined coffin and a dining table with stripper poles sold off at an auction earlier

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The former home of playboy real estate investor Thomas Kramer has sold for $33 million, $7 million lower than the asking price.

The two adjacent properties belonged to Thomas Kramer, 60, and went on the market in March this year after the contents of of his two Florida mansions were auctioned off in February.

Among the items that went on sale were stripper poles, a cherry red-lined coffin and a velociraptor from inside the two mansions once owned by Kramer before he went bankrupt.

According to a report by The Real Deal, the buyer was Stuart Miller, the executive chairman of Lennar Corp., the Miami-based home-building giant.   

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The two adjacent properties (pictured lit up) belonging to bankrupt property invested Thomas Kramer have been sold for $33 million 

The two adjacent properties (pictured lit up) belonging to bankrupt property invested Thomas Kramer have been sold for $33 million 

More than 760 items, including this dining room table with attached stripper poles, inside a pair of Miami mansions formerly belonging to South Beach developer and playboy Thomas Kramer, 60, were sold off at auction on February 14

More than 760 items, including this dining room table with attached stripper poles, inside a pair of Miami mansions formerly belonging to South Beach developer and playboy Thomas Kramer, 60, were sold off at auction on February 14

The properties were purchased at the height of Kramer's fame and wealth. He claimed money given to him by his father-in-law to purchase real estate was a gift but his in-laws said it was a loan  

The properties were purchased at the height of Kramer's fame and wealth. He claimed money given to him by his father-in-law to purchase real estate was a gift but his in-laws said it was a loan  

The properties at 4 and 5 Star Island and 17,000 square feet of living space. They were sold by Verena von Mitschke-Collande and Claudia Miller-Otto, who won a legal battle with Kramer

The properties at 4 and 5 Star Island and 17,000 square feet of living space. They were sold by Verena von Mitschke-Collande and Claudia Miller-Otto, who won a legal battle with Kramer

Inside the properties there are 13 bathrooms and 12 bathrooms, a movie theater, a 10,000-bottle wine cellar, a pool, gym and guest homes

Inside the properties there are 13 bathrooms and 12 bathrooms, a movie theater, a 10,000-bottle wine cellar, a pool, gym and guest homes

The properties include 17,000 square feet of living space, 13 bathrooms and 12 bathrooms, a movie theater, a 10,000-bottle wine cellar, a pool, gym and guest homes. 

The German-born Kramer became a local celebrity and made a small fortune after buying large plots of prime South Beach, Miami during a property boom of in 1990s.

According to The Real Deal, the properties were sold by Verena von Mitschke-Collande and Claudia Miller-Otto, who won a legal battle with Kramer.

Both are the daughters of the late Siegfried Otto, a now-deceased German businessman, whose step-daughter he married and who financed Kramer’s purchases of the Miami Beach homes.

Kramer's extravagant South Beach lifestyle was fueled by the millions given to him by Mr. Otto,

After Kramer lost the legal battle, he had to give up the mansions and all the possession inside, save for his personal photos.

The usual household accouterments - flat-screen TVs, high-end furniture, multiple mirrors, dozens of bottles of wine  and lush rugs - are accounted for in the more than 760 items that make up the auction lot.

Bottles of wine and a life-size statue of a drunk monk are included in the Kramer auction lot

Bottles of wine and a life-size statue of a drunk monk are included in the Kramer auction lot

Kramer has not lived at the Miami mansions in the last five years. He is currently in Switzerland with is girlfriend, Diana Langes-Swarovski, a descendant of the renowned crystal makers 

Kramer has not lived at the Miami mansions in the last five years. He is currently in Switzerland with is girlfriend, Diana Langes-Swarovski, a descendant of the renowned crystal makers 

Kramer was married to Catherine Burda (pictured in 2017). They met in 1989. Burda is Siegfried Otto's stepdaughter

Kramer was married to Catherine Burda (pictured in 2017). They met in 1989. Burda is Siegfried Otto's stepdaughter

Creditors foreclosed and seized Kramer's mansions following a court battle that led to a Swiss court ruling in favor of Kramer's former father-in-law's estate, saddling Kramer with a $200million judgement that a US court said could be enforced in Miami

Creditors foreclosed and seized Kramer's mansions following a court battle that led to a Swiss court ruling in favor of Kramer's former father-in-law's estate, saddling Kramer with a $200million judgement that a US court said could be enforced in Miami

Other items that were up for auction are eyebrow raisers.

There was a king-size bed that comes complete with chrome rings on the bedposts suitable for indulging in bondage activities and a dining room table with two stripper poles affixed to it. 

Topless women appeared in a multitude of the paintings, while an eight foot by 10 foot mural featured muscular men in loincloths and a horse.

There was also a life-sized Alien and Predator movie character statues, a statue of a drunk monk and a rhinoceros sculpture.

Kramer's personal crest, a grey shield emblazoned with a minotaur's head, was liberally applied to books, office equipment and even a large painting.

Additionally, pig-themed figurines - including piggy banks and pigs with angel wings - and paintings abound.

The coffin, which rested on the second floor of one of the mansion's garages, was lined with cherry red cushions and is said to have been purchased when Kramer was depressed.

Kramer's possessions up for auction include life-size Alien and Predator statues

Kramer's possessions up for auction include life-size Alien and Predator statues

Kramer is said to have purchased the coffin (back) when he was in a depressed mood

Kramer is said to have purchased the coffin (back) when he was in a depressed mood

The mass auction of Kramer's home furnishing will wrap up the 20 year period of Kramer's life in which he lost his considerable fortune and his reputation as a shrewd businessman. 

Once, Kramer, a German-born former commodities trader, was considered a notable South Beach developer.

He had already made and lost a fortune on Wall Street, before heading down to Miami Beach and buying property south of Fifth Street at a time when it was plagued by crime. 

He also helped turn around the area by constructing the Portofino Tower, which opened in 1997. 

Kramer's party hard lifestyle led to numerous problems, however, including multiple rape accusations and an accusation that he had inappropriately touched a 13-year-old boy. 

Once, Kramer was charged with punching a restaurant owner who'd merely asked him to extinguish his cigar while dining. 

Although he wasn't convicted of that charge - or in any of the accusations - Kramer did land in legal trouble over the money that he had used to invest in South Beach real estate. 

The auction lot includes familiar mansion accouterments, such as gym equipment, but also features eyebrow raising items like a bed with bondage-ready rings embedded in the bedposts

The auction lot includes familiar mansion accouterments, such as gym equipment, but also features eyebrow raising items like a bed with bondage-ready rings embedded in the bedposts

The house's decoration includes a variety of pig-themed imagery, like these pig paintings

The house's decoration includes a variety of pig-themed imagery, like these pig paintings

Among Kramer's bizarre collection of personal property is this velociraptor statue 

Among Kramer's bizarre collection of personal property is this velociraptor statue 

Kramer claimed that the millions he spent were a gift from Otto, his former father-in-law, but Otto's relatives said the money had been a loan. 

The Swiss courts agreed with Otto's family and ruled that the money was a loan, saddling Kramer with a $200million judgement, which a Miami-Dade civil court judge then ruled could be enforced within the US, resulting in creditors foreclosing on the two mansions and seizing Kramer's possessions.

Kramer hasn't lived in either of the houses for the past five years.

When reached in Switzerland, at the St. Mortiz resort, Kramer told the Miami Herald that he 'closed the chapter Star Island and all the clutter connected with it' following the Swiss courts' ruling in 2012. 

He added that he had no regrets about his time in Miami, but that he now lives a life with 'less parties, less bills, less fights, less controversial court cases' and is in a relationship with Diana Langes-Swarovski, a descendant of the crystal company and an owner of an Austrian soccer team.  

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