Persistence and patience were the keys to the sale of a unique Orlando home.
You might remember Entrelagos, a 14,706-square-foot property with ornate wood carvings and metal railings with foliage throughout. It took nearly five years — and a price reduction of more than 50 percent to the original $25 million listing — to land its new owners.
When it first hit the market in 2021, listing agent Richard Dempsey with Saunders Real Estate said, “Almost every bit of the finishing on the interior of the property is done with woodwork that was hand-carved by Filipino artisans and then shipped to the site.”
A grand spiral staircase through a library was a focal point of the house, along with the flowers and leaves carved into multiple huge columns. Many of the interior doors had inlaid mother-of-pearl.
Massive wooden columns and interior doors are hand-carved and painted works of art. (Courtesy of Saunders Real Estate)
The estate features three spiral staircases, including this one in the library.(Courtesy of Saunders Real Estate)
“The sellers had spent a lot of time and thought as to what exactly they wanted and fashioned it to their taste, for sure,” Dempsey said about the house after the sale closed.
Back in 2021, the home and an adjacent vacant lot were listed for $25 million, had a price reduction to $19.5 million in 2024, and just sold in January 2026 over two transactions for a combined $11 milllion, according to a report in GrowthSpotter.
When asked about the rarity of a seller accepting a price so much under asking, he said, “the deal was unique in every aspect.”
Listing agent Dempsey stuck with the listing the whole time.
The 12-bedroom estate sits on 2.44 acres on a peninsula between Lake Tibet and Lake Sheen. (Courtesy of Saunders Real Estate)
“One thing I’ve learned in my career is patience is definitely a virtue, and so I patiently did all I needed to do and ultimately wound up being able to help facilitate the transaction,” Dempsey said, adding that seeing the sale close gave him a sense of relief, accomplishment, and satisfaction.
The buyers are married medical doctors Ashish Pal and Sunita Bhanot, who already own two homes on the same block of Cypress Pointe Drive — including one they bought a year ago. The couple also owns a $12.5 million estate on Lake Mabel, which they purchased in 2021 and was the most expensive home sale that year.
Entrelagos was built in 1999 and has 12 bedrooms and 12 full bathrooms, spread between three stories in the main house, a three-bedroom guesthouse, and staff quarters.
A large pool with a 2,000-square-foot pool deck is next to a pool house with a bar, outdoor kitchen, spa, and steam room.
The pool is a tri-level resort style pool with waterfalls connecting each level. The area includes a cabana bar with a full summer kitchen, spa, steam room, and full bathroom.
(Courtesy of Saunders Real Estate)
Entrelagos Holdings Corp, a Florida-based foreign profit corporation of the Dio family, is the seller.
The Julie Bettosini Team with Stockworth Realty Group represented the buyers.
Making the deal took some time.
“It was presented to the buyer by another agent based on the MLS listing and after very lengthy negotiation and lot of back and forth, we finally got a contract and finally got it sold,” Dempsey told GrowthSpotter.
The home sits on a 2.4-acre peninsula of land in the gated community of Point Cypress. One part of the home faces Lake Sheen and the other Lake Tibet. The covered boat dock is on Lake Tibet.
The estate sits on a 2.4-acre double-lot in the gated Cypress Point community. It’s on a peninsula with a boat dock on Lake Tibet and front views of Lake Sheen. (Orange County Property Appraiser)
“I think the location was probably the biggest contributor [to the sale] and the unique characteristics of the property. The location is spectacular. It’s on a really rare property for sure,” Dempsey said, adding the adjacent almost one-acre lot sold separately to the same buyers a few weeks after the sale of the home.
While the price of the sale might point to a tear-down, Dempsey said the buyers were not planning to do so, as far as he knew.
“They’re going to do some updating and renovating and that’s the extent of what I know,” he said, adding he did not have a lot of direct contact with the buyers themselves.
“I felt like I had helped two parties achieve their goals, which is what I view is my primary responsibility,” Dempsey said. “Helping parties accomplish their desires, and I was glad to help facilitate that.”
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