The federal government is about to sell off more than $20 million in real estate owned by Ponzi scammer Bernard Madoff. Properties for sale include his Upper East Side Manhattan duplex; valued at $7.5 million; his 3,000-square-foot, Long Island, N.Y., beach house, $7 million; and his 6,475-square-foot Palm Beach, Fla., mansion on the Intracoastal, $7.5 million.

Besides these properties, the Feds are selling Madoff's 55-foot fishing boat for $1.5 million, approximately $6 million in furniture, and they've already unloaded a three-bedroom vacation house on the Cote d'Azur for $1.48 million.

Some observers say the government's estimate for the Manhattan duplex and the Florida mansion to be high, but they think the Long Island beach house may be bid up beyond the sale price because it is closer to the water than current zoning would allow.

Source: CNNMoney.com (08/03/2009)

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