Larry Page, Coconut Grove and the billionaire tax California votes on Tuesday

A billionaire's bayfront and a California vote

Google co-founder Larry Page paid $71.9 million for a Coconut Grove bayfront estate, The Wall Street Journal reported. For Florida's waterfront owners, the price is the point: it is about 57% more than the estate sold for in 2021, by our arithmetic from county records. Page's representatives say he lives in Florida, Forbes reported Oct. 21. Forbes said it found no updated voter records or declaration of domicile, the filing that states a legal home, to show it.

Why it matters: Miami-Dade now figures the estate's school property tax on a value of about $56.1 million, up about $13.3 million in one year, by our arithmetic. California's measure would take a one-time 5% of each billionaire resident's net worth. Florida has no state income tax on residents and repealed its yearly tax on stocks and bonds in 2007.

The story so far: Fortune reported in January, citing the Journal, that Page bought two neighboring Coconut Grove estates in late December and early January. County records show a trust bought this one for $71.9 million on Dec. 26, 2025. They do not name Page, but the price and timing match the Journal's report.

What's new: California votes on Tuesday, Nov. 3. A UC Berkeley poll released Oct. 29, co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, found 42% of likely voters for the tax and 50% against, the Times and The Mercury News reported. The same poll had the tax ahead in mid-September. A Public Policy Institute of California poll released Oct. 27 found 46% for it and 52% against; in September, 52% backed it.

Who's who

Larry Page co-founded Google, the search company, and Forbes puts his fortune at $288 billion. Prop 40 is California's measure for a one-time tax on billionaire residents. SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, a California health care workers union, is behind the yes campaign. Sergey Brin, Google's other co-founder, is one of the largest backers of the effort to block the tax, CNN reports. Gavin Newsom, California's governor, opposes the tax. Mark Zuckerberg, who runs Meta, appears in his company's filing on what the tax could cost him.

The press names Page, and the record names a trust

No public record we read names Page as the buyer. The Wall Street Journal reported his purchases, and Fortune relayed them on Jan. 8. Page bought two neighboring estates, "paying roughly $101.5 million for one waterfront compound and $71.9 million for another in an off-market deal," Fortune wrote. That is about $173.4 million in all. Forbes separately reports that he spent $173 million on two houses in Coconut Grove.

By Feb. 5, the Journal reported, Page had spent $188.4 million on three properties in Coconut Grove. Fortune says the $71.9 million home was bought from heiress Sloan Lindemann Barnett and her husband, Roger Barnett. The deed names a company as the seller, and no county record names the Barnetts.

The county record matches Fortune's price. A trust bought a Coconut Grove waterfront estate for $71.9 million by a deed dated Dec. 26, 2025. The deed paid $431,400 in Florida documentary stamps, the state's tax on a deed. The seller had paid $45.91 million for the estate in March 2021. The match to Page rests on the same price, neighborhood and timing. It is our match, not a record tie.

On the county's 2026 roll, the estate's school taxable value is $56,134,425. It was $42,827,963 in 2025 and $40,631,124 in 2024. That is a rise of about $13.3 million in one year, by our arithmetic. The roll lists no newer sale.

What California votes on Tuesday

Prop 40 "imposes 5% tax on certain taxpayers with assets over $1 billion," with the money mainly for health care, California's official voter guide says. A yes vote means the state would collect a one-time tax equal to 5% of a billionaire's wealth. It is not a yearly tax. CNBC estimates that 200 to 250 billionaires would owe it.

The state's own estimate is a temporary revenue increase of tens of billions of dollars, spread over several years. It also sees a possible ongoing loss of less than $1 billion a year in income tax revenue from billionaires.

Two rival measures share the ballot, CalMatters reports. Prop 41 would make new tax measures passed after the start of this year follow the state's yearly spending limit, with a review by the state auditor. Prop 42 would bar new taxes on personal property and ban taxes that reach back in time. If either outpolls Prop 40, the billionaire tax does not take effect. If Prop 40 gets more votes than both, it takes effect and voids them.

The measure's text applies the tax to people who were California residents on its tax obligation date, Jan. 1, 2026. It values their net worth on Dec. 31, 2026. Real property held directly, or through a revocable trust, does not count toward net worth, the text says.

Florida has no state income tax on residents. Its constitution bars one beyond what a resident may credit against a similar federal or state tax. The state repealed its yearly tax on stocks, bonds and similar holdings in 2007, the Department of Revenue says. Forbes counts 255 billionaires living in California, 153 in New York, 138 in Florida and 88 in Texas.

Who is paying for each side

Committees backing Prop 40 reported $33.4 million in contributions through Oct. 22, California's Secretary of State reports. Of that, $32.9 million went to the yes committee sponsored by SEIU-UHW. Committees against it reported $130.3 million, about 3.9 to 1, by our arithmetic. The largest no committee reported $118.7 million.

Brin gave $102 million over the last year to Building a Better California, CNN reported in September, citing state campaign finance records. CalMatters puts his giving at "at least $102 million." The group is the main backer of Props 41 and 42, CalMatters reports. No record we read ties any of this campaign money to a Florida deed.

Their side

Fortune's report carries no statement from Page or anyone speaking for him. According to their representatives, Page lives in Florida and Brin in Nevada, Forbes reported Oct. 21. Forbes said it could not find updated voter records or declarations of domicile, and the spokespeople declined to provide proof. That is the representatives' word, not a record.

Suzanne Jimenez, chief of staff of SEIU-UHW, said "large majorities of Democratic voters" still support the tax, CalMatters reported Oct. 28.

Newsom endorsed Prop 42 on Friday, Oct. 9, CalMatters reported. He has also said he is a No vote on Prop 40, CNBC reports. Debru Carthan, a vice president of the union, answered: "He'd rather millions of children and families lose their healthcare than ask a couple hundred billionaires..."

Meta's Oct. 21 filing with the SEC says Zuckerberg "could become liable for a significant, multi-billion dollar tax payment" if Prop 40 becomes law. It says he committed, for eight years and while he meets a leadership condition, to remain a resident of California or wherever Meta keeps its headquarters. The filing allows for "material unforeseen circumstances."

What's next

What's next: Californians vote on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Prediction markets expect the tax to fail, CNBC reported Oct. 22. If Prop 40 passes and outpolls both rivals, it values each billionaire's net worth as of Dec. 31, 2026, its text says.

Sources we read

Miami-Dade Property Appraiser record for the Coconut Grove estate, read Oct. 29, 2026. California Secretary of State: the Official Voter Information Guide for Prop 40, the Prop 40 text and the ballot measure contribution totals through Oct. 22. Public Policy Institute of California, October 2026 survey. Los Angeles Times and The Mercury News, Oct. 29, on the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll. The Florida Constitution, Article VII. Florida Department of Revenue, notice TIP 07C02-01. Meta Platforms preliminary information statement, filed Oct. 21, 2026. Fortune, Jan. 8. The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 5, as reposted by Terra Group. Forbes (Colombia edition of the Forbes US report), Oct. 21. CNBC, Oct. 22. CalMatters, Sept. 24 and Oct. 28. San Francisco Standard, Oct. 27. CNN via KEYT, Sept. 29. CalMatters via KPBS, Oct. 12.