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I recently sat down with Ralph Choeff, founding partner of Choeff Levy Fischman Architecture + Design, the firm behind some of South Florida’s most distinctive and highly sought-after residential properties.

Ralph, born in Cuba, fled with his family to Israel when Castro took power. Afterward, they came to Miami, and eventually New York, where Ralph studied architecture at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. His early years moving around and learning architectural design in the Big Apple gave him a global perspective on residential design. After graduating, he returned to Miami and got his license to design in 1983, the same year he started his firm.

Ralph spent his early years designing what he calls "Boca-texture," the faux Spanish architecture that dominated suburban South Florida in the 80s. The foundation he built during that time eventually gave way to the tropical modern style he's now synonymous with, featuring sweeping indoor-outdoor living, cascading water features, and residences designed to feel like a resort.

His big break came when designing Alex Rodriguez’s home on North Bay Road. That media blitz set the stage for what the firm looks like today. Its impressive portfolio and pipeline includes the Beckham home, on that same road; competing for a mega-residence in the UAE; designing sprawling tropical modern residences on Miami Beach and Indian Creek; in addition to having designed one of the highest-priced residential listing in the United States - a $285 million, 50,000 SF compound in Manalapan, right next door to Larry Ellison.

• How Ralph went from designing stucco Spanish tract homes to becoming the architect behind some of the most expensive residential properties ever built in America.

   

• The "Tropical Modern" design philosophy and why the indoor-outdoor resort aesthetic is the ultimate luxury for ultra-high-net-worth clients.

   

• The story behind the Beckham home on North Bay Road, where it was originally designed for a different client, sold to David and Victoria for $72.5 million, and how it reset Miami Beach comps to surpass $100 million.

   

• Designing for A-Rod and how the 20,000 SF home landed a cover of Architectural Digest.

   

• What goes into conceptualizing a $285 million listing in Manalapan, currently one of the highest-priced residential listings in the United States.

   

• How technology has redefined what's possible in an ultra-luxury home, from 13-foot sliding glass walls, whole-home automation, circadian lighting, cold plunges, hyperbaric chambers, and car museums, all spec'd before the first drawing.

   

• Why Ralph believes Miami is at an inflection point and whether its leaders will build something lasting for generations to come.

   

• The role marketing and PR played in Ralph's breakout, and why notoriety and AI systems are now how clients find their architect.

   

• Ralph's advice to anyone starting out: learn the business first, pull the all-nighters, put in your hours, and when the break comes, be ready to take it. 

Ralph has spent four decades fine-tuning his vision for what has become the architectural style that is synonymous with luxury living in South Florida. We look forward to watching how it continues to shape this region’s coastal skylines.

Watch the full episode on YouTube and listen on Spotify and Apple Music.

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