Palm Beach Weighs Foreclosing on 332 S. County Rd Over $236K in Fines

The Town of Palm Beach Council votes Oct. 13 on whether to foreclose on a 1935 mixed-use building at 332 S. County Road, across from Town Hall, over accumulating code fines. The Palm Beach Daily News reported the Code Enforcement Board recommended the move, which The Real Deal framed as a question of whether the town will follow through. The Real Deal is behind a paywall to us, so we rely on the Daily News for the case details and the county appraiser for the property record.

Why it matters

Foreclosing on a code lien is rare in Palm Beach, and the Daily News says this is the second attempt. In 2012 the board made the same recommendation and the case settled that year, with more than $99,000 in fines paid and the residential units cut from 19 to eight, according to the paper. The town manager called the case unusual for the length, severity and persistence of the violations. Two cases remain open: a fire-safety issue the town treats as life-safety, and the building’s interior and exterior condition. Related coverage: South Florida.

The numbers

Fines run $250 a day on each of the two cases and totaled $236,200 as of Oct. 6, per the Daily News. A construction agreement set a Feb. 16, 2026 repair deadline, and the paper reports about half the required items were addressed as of Sept. 28.

The county appraiser lists parcel 50-43-43-23-05-027-0300 as a low-rise apartment and retail building with eight units and 9,402 square feet. The owner of record is an entity named for the address. It last sold on Feb. 4, 2002 for $1.3 million. The 2026 proposed market value is $5,099,622, with $3,398,456 of that in land, against an assessed value of $2,816,010. On those figures the fines equal roughly 4.6% of proposed market value and would keep growing.

What’s next

The council decides Oct. 13 whether to authorize foreclosure. The Daily News reports the owner’s attorney said the owner remains committed to working with the town to resolve the code concerns. We have not seen the council agenda or any filing, and the outcome is not yet known. A settlement before or after the vote, as in 2012, would be a plausible path.