NEW YORK: The tech billionaire lives on his 233-foot superyacht for six months a year to avoid paying property taxes on land in California and New York
Decades before the world’s richest people began leaving high-tax states like California and New York for Florida and Texas, one tech mogul quietly found his own way to avoid local taxes, strict building rules and the need for a permanent home.Charles Simonyi, the Microsoft engineer behind Word and Excel, solved two problems at once by building a floating house to own a luxury property. Rather than buying expensive condos in different cities, he commissioned a custom-built, $100 million 233-foot superyacht called Skat in the 1990s, and by 2002 Skat was fully built and delivered. For nearly two decades, he lived and worked on his yacht for up to six months a year, avoiding millions of dollars in property taxes while enjoying some of the most exclusive oceanfront locations in the world.
Floating solution for land tax
Forbes estimates Simeone’s net worth at about $7.2 billion. He could easily own property almost anywhere on earth. He looked at luxury apartments in Montreal, Monte Carlo and Copenhagen, but found that owning a home in different countries comes with property taxes, strict planning rules and high maintenance costs.His solution was to stop relying on a permanent home. By moving his life onto a fully-furnished yacht, he avoided area property taxes and local regulations while gaining the freedom to go wherever he wanted.Simone uses the yacht as both a “home base for his travels” and a fully equipped office, spending about half of the year on board. Since the yacht can be moved at any time, he is able to dock in the center of major cities, often obtaining seaside locations that simply cannot be purchased on land.In Scandinavian capitals such as Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm, Simonyi could dock the Skat next to the royal palace. He once joked that his floating home gave him the best real estate, the best bathrooms and a great restaurant, all without paying municipal property taxes.
The floating battleship that fooled the Navy
Built by the German shipyard Lürssen and delivered in 2002 under the project name Project 9906, the Skat looked completely different from other luxury yachts of the time. Simone disliked the smooth, rounded shape of many yachts, saying they looked like they were “carved out of soft cheese.”To create something different, he hired renowned yacht designer Espen Øino to build a steel yacht that actually looked like a steel boat. The final design features flat, sharp surfaces painted in two shades of grey, with the hull number 9906 displayed in military-style font.The yacht looked so much like a naval vessel that it caused a delay in a real warship entering the port, as officials briefly mistook Simone’s yacht for an unidentified warship.While the exterior looks rough and industrial, the interior is designed to resemble an elegant art gallery. Its minimalist space showcases works by great artists such as Roy Lichtenstein and Victor Vasarely, alongside classic Arne Jacobsen Egg chairs.
A superyacht looks so militarized that it reportedly fooled the real navy
The yacht is 71 meters (233 feet) long and has a gross tonnage of 1,998 tons. Designed by Espen Øino International and manufactured in Germany, it cruises comfortably at around 15 knots (approximately 27.8 km/h). It also has its own helipad.In order to make the yacht as quiet as possible, Simone insisted on using advanced noise control technology during the construction process. Engineers mounted engines, generators, water generators, air compressors and other heavy machinery on a large steel platform supported by special shock mounts. This military-inspired system blocks vibrations from traveling through the hull, keeping the owner’s suite as quiet as a library, with a measured noise of just 34 decibels while cruising. For context, a quiet residential street has about 40-50 decibels of noise.
The modern wealth tax debate
As the debate over wealth taxes continues in the United States, Simeone’s mobile lifestyle has become particularly important. In 2026, high-tax states such as California and New York are considering stricter tax policies for their wealthiest residents, encouraging some billionaires to permanently relocate to low-tax states such as Florida and Texas.In California, voters are preparing to decide on a proposed one-time wealth tax that would impose a 5% wealth tax on residents with a net worth of at least $1 billion starting on January 1, 2026. While the proposal excludes assets such as real estate, pensions and retirement accounts, it still raises concerns that the wealthy may move elsewhere. If passed, it would raise about $100 billion for health care, education and food aid, but critics, including leading Republicans, say it would encourage high earners to change their tax residency status.New York faces similar discussions. Although the state currently does not impose a wealth tax on personal assets, lawmakers frequently advance proposals to impose one. The state continues to rely heavily on a graduated income tax, leaving the state fiscally sensitive if wealthy residents decide to leave. mayor of new york city Zoran Mamdani We also fully support this wealth tax.
Built by Lürssen as Project 9906 and delivered in 2002, Skat was unlike almost all superyachts of its generation
A legacy of digital and maritime innovation
Simonyi approached yachts with the same logical thinking that made him one of the most important figures in personal computing. As head of Microsoft’s Applications Group in the early 1980s, he led the development of the company’s first major software products. He is widely considered the “chief architect” behind Microsoft Word and Excel and helped launch the “What You See Is What You Get” (WYSIWYG) editing system that changed office software forever.His interest in exploring new frontiers eventually took him beyond the oceans and into space. Simonyi traveled to the International Space Station twice, in 2007 and 2009, becoming the first repeat guest in the history of space tourism. The two trips cost approximately $60 million.
Simonyi traveled to the International Space Station twice, in 2007 and 2009
When plans for Skat were first announced in the late 1990s, the lack of advanced 3D design software made it difficult to envision the finished yacht. One observer even predicted it would be the ugliest yacht ever built. However, after seeing the finished gray boat launched in 2002, he changed his mind and simply said, “That’s cool.”Simonyi sold Skat in 2021. Rather than return to life on land, he upgraded to Norn, a larger 295-foot Lürssen superyacht also designed by Espen Øino that cost about $250 million.
