Call him unconventional. Call him creative. You can even call him a bit crazy. Just don’t call mega-mansion creator Frank McKinney a builder, speculator or developer, as that will really drive him nuts.

And for good reason.

One of many developers and builders in South Florida, McKinney, of Manalapan, has his own style and recipe for success. You might even call him the anti-Trump (although he’s quick to point out that he’s always been impressed with Trump, especially when it comes to branding).

“I’m not your typical real estate developer; I am a real estate ‘artist’,” says McKinney during an interview in his oceanfront treehouse office. Reachable via a steep set of wooden stairs, the unique office inspires McKinney’s creative side. And how could it not? His desk chair directly faces the Atlantic Ocean—or, as he calls it, the “sun-drenched canvas” for his creations. “Each of my homes is truly a work of art,” says McKinney.

Known best as the creative force behind some of the most opulent “spec” mansions in the world (including his latest masterpiece, which is expected to list for about $125 million), McKinney is definitely a different kind of business man. He races in the most grueling marathons in the world (including the 100-mile Badwater 135), devotes 30 percent of his time to his charity (including the Caring House Project Foundation, which provides housing for the homeless), has a go-cart track in his backyard, drives a 1976 Trans Am, and walks his 7-year-old daughter to school in Delray Beach every day.

His rock-star looks (a la David Lee Roth) and somewhat offbeat style do not quite fit with the profile of a guy who goes to bed at 9 p.m. and wakes up at 4:30 every morning to go for a run. “A lot of people might look at me and get the wrong idea about who I am, but it’s all perception,” says McKinney. “I’m really not as crazy as I look—I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I don’t gamble, and I don’t womanize. My family is my number-one priority.”

Starting From Scratch
The oldest of six children, McKinney moved to South Florida from his native Indiana in the mid-’80s at the age of 18 with $50 in his pocket. After attending four high schools in four years and scraping by with a 1.8 GPA, he skipped college, opting not to follow in his banker father’s footsteps. Instead, he got to work digging sand traps on a Deerfield Beach golf course and teaching tennis to wealthy Palm Beachers. “I learned very quickly that the way people really made a lot of money here [in Florida] was in real estate,” says McKinney.

Within a few years, he had taught enough tennis lessons to save up $30,000—enough to buy a “crack house” in the very sketchy Northwood neighborhood of West Palm Beach. “It was falling down and the neighborhood was really, really bad,” says McKinney. “Drug dealers, drive-by shootings, you name it.”

In spite of all that, McKinney achieved his first success by renovating the house and reselling it six months later for $50,000, resulting in a $7,000 profit. “It was my first big real estate deal,” recalls McKinney, who adds that homes in that same neighborhood, on the same block, have tripled and quadrupled in value. He followed that house with a string of others, and began increasing his profits to $20,000 to $40,000 per house.

After six successful years of doing this, McKinney built up his net worth to a level that enabled him to purchase his first piece of oceanfront property—a house called Driftwood Dunes—for $775,000. It was a huge risk, as he had to sell everything, including his own home, car and even some of his clothes to finance the project. Frank and his wife Nilsa moved into a small studio apartment and lived there for four years while he put every dime he had into renovating this house. That’s how confident he was in the potential profitability of oceanfront real estate.

His risk paid off big; he sold the property in 1994 for $1.9 million. Since then, McKinney hasn’t purchased or invested in anything but the finest direct oceanfront properties in Palm Beach County. “You never have to worry about the resale value of oceanfront property,” says McKinney. “It is one of the few commodities that will always give you a sizeable return on your investment. Not only will you get a financial return, but there is an emotional return that is second to none.”

Supply and Demand
When asked his opinion on the current state of the luxury real estate market, McKinney is quick to point out that even without a college degree, it’s pretty easy to understand the laws of supply and demand. “No matter what else is happening, you are always going to have two classes of homebuyers—first-time homebuyers, and the ultra-wealthy,” says McKinney. “These people are always going to be there, and they are always going to be looking to buy a home.”

He notes that the appreciation rates of 25 to 30 percent over the past few years cannot be realistically sustained. But that doesn’t mean the market’s bubble has burst. “Historically, real estate has appreciated anywhere from 6 to 12 percent year over year, depending on the location,” says McKinney. “I’ll take that kind of profit any day, especially when it’s outpacing the 3.9 percent rate of inflation. What’s happened is we’ve gone from a ‘seller’s market’ to a ‘normal market.’ Not to mention people have gotten greedy.”

Seaside Splendor
Following his initial successful foray into the oceanfront property game, McKinney designed his first oceanfront property from the ground up. The 23,000-square-foot, French-style estate—called La Marceaux—featured a two-story living room, a 3,000-square-foot master suite, a six-car garage, a replica of the Oval Office and its own private beach. It sold for $12 million. Many of the estates McKinney has renovated or built from the ground up have doubled or even tripled in value since he initially sold them. While the average time on the market for oceanfront estates is 15 months in Palm Beach County, McKinney sold two in less than 90 days—one for $7 million and one for $17 million.

Trademark Touches
McKinney’s homes are known for their attention to detail, their opulence, and the massive extras and luxurious touches that come standard in each masterpiece. His wife is a talented interior designer who outfits the homes with one-of-a-kind, gorgeous furnishings and accessories (every McKinney home is sold furnished). “The homes are designed down to the last detail, down to the gold-plated toothbrushes we put in the bathrooms,” says McKinney. Colorful aquariums, wet bars, shark tanks, grottos, massive guest houses, tennis courts, waterfalls, screening rooms, master suites larger than many single-family homes, and exotic foliage and landscaping are incorporated into McKinney’s estates. The most expensive of his homes sold to date (the asking price was close to $50 million) featured 32,000 square feet, a whopping 72 rooms, 12 bedrooms, 18 baths and a 14-car garage.

This summer, McKinney plans to break ground on his most opulent project to date, located at 700 South Ocean Boulevard in Manalapan Beach (www.700southocean.com). At 70,000 square feet, the massive home will sit on a five-and-a-half-acre, ocean-to-Intracoastal lot. When asked why there is still a “for sale” sign on the grounds, he says that until the shovel hits the ground, it’s for sale “for the right price.”

“No one else has an oceanfront lot of this size,” says McKinney. “It doesn’t hurt that we’re not the only ones building a $100 million spec house in this town, as that just generates more buzz.” He is referring, of course, to the estate being renovated and sold by Donald Trump—the former Abe Gosman estate on the north end of Palm Beach. It, too, carries a price tag upwards of $100 million.

“I realize that only 8,000 people in this world can afford a $120 million home,” says McKinney. “But I also truly believe that there will always be a client for this type of home, as the people in this world worth over $100 million keep getting richer. We are creating the market for this caliber of oceanfront home. Our clients tend to be self-made millionaires (or billionaires) and are impulsive, quick decision-makers and titans of their industry. For most, these estates are not their primary home, and buying a home like this is sort of a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award.’ These people have worked hard, and they won’t deny themselves anything.”

And why should they? It’s been proven (or so McKinney says) that people live longer when they live by the ocean.

To find out more about Frank McKinney and his secrets to success, read the two books he penned from his treehouse, MAKE IT BIG! 49 Secrets for Building a Life of Extreme Success and the more recent release, Frank McKinney’s Maverick Approach to Real Estate Success: How You Can Go From a $50,000 Fixer-Upper to a $100 Million Mansion. -Stacy Small

Online: frank-mckinney.com