Beachfront Foreclosure "Steals" Just Aren’t Happening in South Beach
I receive a number of phone calls each week from nonlocals looking to “steal” a condo in South Beach directly on the beach. I tell them every time that it’s just not happening. Beachfront property is still in very high demand.
Case in point is a foreclosure condo at Hilton Bentley Miami Beach that became available towards the beginning of February. It’s a 1 bedroom/1 bath with 620 square feet, fully furnished and listed at $379,900. I never posted about this foreclosure because I wanted my best clients to jump on this opportunity before other agents in town knew about it. I took a look at the condo and it was in prestine shape. Great views, plasma TVs in the living room and bedroom, stainless steel appliances and furniture that was in like-new condition. I submitted a few offers but I was told that 8 other offers were submitted and none of mine were the highest. One of my clients has contacted me a few times within the last couple of weeks, out of curiosity, to find out for how much the condo eventually closed. The foreclosure condo at Bentley Beach closed for $459,900 on March 26, 2008. Again, it was listed for $379,900. Someone bid through the asking price by $80,000!
This is not just one instance. I’ve been seeing a number of South Beach foreclosures and short-sale condos being bid through their offers. As the old adage says, if it looks too good to be true then it usually is.
Breathtaking Views From a Condo at One Bal Harbour
It was a perfectly gorgeous afternoon in South Florida today. I thought I’d share with everyone a few pictures that I shot from a condo on the 12th floor at One Bal Harbour this afternoon.
If you’re a boat lover then you’ll have plenty of opportunities to gaze at beautiful boats zipping by through the Bal Harbour inlet.
Miami Condo News & Rumors
I’ve heard, saw and ascertained much on the street within the past couple of weeks regarding the Miami condo market but haven’t had the time to write an in-depth post about each item. I figured that something short and sweet is better than nothing at all. So here it is:
As many of you have already heard, a construction crane fell this afternoon at around 1:45pm at Paramount Bay. 2 people were reported dead and 5 reported injured. My warmest regards goes out to all with family or friends involved in the accident. The crane fell through the roof of the home that belonged to Mary in the 1998 film Something About Mary. Though many of you have called and emailed, no, Mary was not harmed during the accident.
This one goes into the “rumor” category. I’ve heard that BAP Development is on the brink of bankruptcy. BAP Development is the developer behind Onyx on the Bay. Closings for condos at Onyx on the Bay began on July 31, 2007. My February condo closing rate post revealed that Onyx on the Bay was able to close only 45.38 percent of its units at the time. Another rumor that I’ve heard, but haven’t been able to confirm, is that Continental, the property management company, walked out on Onyx on the Bay because the developer was unable to pay them any longer. Anyone hear anything regarding this?
Another rumor here. A loyal reader revealed to me today, via email, that he heard today that Boca Developers “went belly up” . Boca Developers is the development company behind Peninsula I, Peninsula II and Biscayne Landing. He also stated that he was able to confirm that Boca Developers “cut loose” their sales staff for Peninsula II and Biscayne Landing. Has anyone else out there caught wind of this?
Closings have begun at Continuum North Tower in South Beach. I’ll get my chance to tour the newest addition to South of Fifth this Thursday morning with some out-of-state clients. I will try to share what I see that day with readers of this blog at a later date.
There’s going to be some great additions to Midtown Miami. This one I heard from a Midtown representative last week. The two parcels of land between the Midtown shops and the two condo buildings just east of it, Midtown 2 and 4, will be transformed into a very nice park within the next 3 months. However, there are plans for an IMAX Theater to go into the northern parcel of land within the next 2-3 years. Additionally, Midblock will house a Sushi Samba and Segafredo’s relatively soon. I was pretty pessimistic about Midtown about six months ago but I think this is going to be the place to be for 20-somethings in about 3 years. It may very well become what it was promised to be: a city within a city.
Someone recently left a comment saying that, after 3 appraisals, they were unable to have their condo at 1060 Brickell appraise for the amount on their purchase contract. Any other contract holders at 1060 Brickell having this problem?
Asking prices of condos in the “mortgage fraud” buildings in Brickell have come down BIG since November 2007. The last time I did a Brickell Condo Index was November 2007. Last Tuesday, I pulled some new data. I haven’t had the time to reveal a full-blown monthly Brickell Condo Index, but I will reveal what the asking prices for the following buildings with prevalent mortgage fraud have fallen since November 2007:
The Club at Brickell Bay – The average asking price per square foot has fallen 22.86% since November 2007.
Vue at Brickell – Average asking price per square foot has fallen 19.60% since November 2007.
Jade at Brickell Bay – The average asking price per square foot has fallen 16.24% since November 2007.
Those are some large reductions in asking prices since November 2007. Only time will tell how much further the “fallen angels” will fall.
The Sail on Brickell Penthouse 2 Bedroom/2 Bath Foreclosure – $299,900
I urge everyone to read my post in September. It will provide much insight as to how prevalent the mortgage fraud was back then in Miami. I actually reread my post and I was like “Damn! That was a great post”. Back then I didn’t have many readers. My readership was made up of just around one hundred people.
Currently, there are two 2 bedroom/2 bath short-sales at The Sail on Brickell listed for $599,000. Both short-sales are the condos that I discussed in my July and September posts that had recently closed. This makes it apparent to me that the buyers never had the intention to hold these condos but rather defraud our U.S. banking system. Our banking system in this country has enough problems. I’m very upset about my findings. Very!
Here are the two condos that were sold at The Sail on Brickell in July and September:
Unit 2504 was listed at $670,000 and sold for $670,000
Unit 2204 was listed at $670,000 and sold for $670,000
Both were sold by the same broker. <<<<<<<<<<<<<
Where is the mortgage fraud task force when you need them?
Two Multi-Million Dollar Condos Recently Go Pending in Brickell
Two multi-million dollar condos in Brickell recently went pending within the past 30 days. The first was a 5 bedroom/6.5 bath Penthouse condo at Santa Maria with 6,300 square feet that went pending on March 3, 2008. The list price was $5.29M, or $840 per square foot. The views from this Penthouse condo at Santa Maria are simply amazing, as you can see from the above picture. The MLS listing description and photos of this Penthouse condo at Santa Maria will show you just how amazing this condo truly is.
What’s interesting to note is that the current owner purchased this Penthouse condo at Santa Maria for $3.9M in the latter half of 2005, when many would say the Miami condo market peaked. This just goes to show that the ultra-luxury condo market in Miami has continued to hold up well. Despite the potential profit that the current owner makes, anything under $840 per square foot for this unit is a freakin’ bargain. In my opinion, Santa Maria is the best condo building in Brickell and is in a complete league of their own. No foreclosures or short-sales that I’ve ever come across, and a comparatively very low maintenance fee, despite the world-class amenities that Santa Maria has to offer.
The second multi-million dollar condo in Brickell to go pending within the past 30 days is the Penthouse condo at Epic located on the Miami River near the inlet into Biscayne Bay which went pending on Febuary 27, 2008. It’s a 4 bedroom/5.5 bath two-story Penthouse with 4,522 interior square feet and an amazing 7,488 total square feet, including balconies. The list price on this bad boy is $5M. Epic is currently still under construction but should be completed by the end of this year.
What is not a coincidence is that the developer behind both condo buildings is Ugo Columbo. He is well-known for delivering some of the most high-quality condo products to Miami. His reputation definitely supersedes him. I can’t wait to get inside Epic to see how it compares to his previous condo developments such as Santa Maria, Bristol Tower and Grovenor House.
Here are some multi-million dollar condos in Dade County that have actually resold and closed in 2008:
Emerald at Brickell 2 Bedroom Tower Suite Short-Sale – $499,000
This 2 bedroom/2 bath tower suite short-sale at Emerald at Brickell slipped through my radar since the middle of February because the listing agent failed to include the correct zip code with the listing. This short-sale condo is listed at $499,000, or about $395 per square foot. It has direct views of Biscayne Bay and Key Biscayne.
The next best priced tower suite condo at Emerald at Brickell is listed at $699,00. It is slightly bigger but is still listed at over $140 per square foot more. If the correct zip code (and correct spelling of the development) had been included, I suspect that this condo would have been under contract by now. It fell off my radar and I’m guessing that it fell off the radar of many other Realtors and buyers.
Follow-Up to the Flamingo South Beach North Tower Cancellation Story
I received a very interesting phone call from a Realtor ® this afternoon. He told me that a client of his placed a contract on a condo in the North Tower of Flamingo South Beach a while back. Now that the North Tower will not be converted, his client is requesting his deposit back. However, the developer is telling the agent that his client’s deposit will not be refunded unless the agent’s broker gives back the front-end commission it was paid in the past. I called another agent who sold a condo in the North Tower of Flamingo South Beach and he is going through the same ordeal.
This is a bunch of B.S. if you ask me. These contract holders are not the ones looking to cancel their contract. It is the developer who is canceling their plans to convert the tower. The agents did their job in bringing the developer a willing and able buyer. I’m not an attorney but I would think that the developer doesn’t have a strong argument. Besides, real estate brokerages are struggling these days. How many brokers will want to fork over the commission that was spent long ago? What happens to contract holders who bought a condo in the North Tower through a brokerage that is now out of business? Do these contract holders simply lose their deposit money?
It’s a dog-eat-dog world I tell you!
The Floridian 3 Bedroom Condo Foreclosure in South Beach – A Fantastic Deal at $444,900
A 3 bedroom/2 bath condo foreclosure was listed earlier today for $444,900 at The Floridian located at 650 West Avenue in South Beach. The condo is located on the 28th floor and faces west with direct views of Biscayne Bay, the Downtown Miami skyline and Star, Palm and Hibiscus Islands. The bank is also offering a $7,000 credit at closing to the buyer. Take a look at the MLS details of this condo foreclosure at The Floridian.
The following three bedroom units have sold on the MLS within the last 12 months at The Floridian:
Unit 2008 (faces east) – closed April 26, 2007 – $695,000
Unit 3007 (faces west) – closing June 15, 2007 – $725,000
My guess is that there will be multiple offers on this condo by the end of the week.
The Regent Bal Harbour Hotel & Residences Celebrates its Grand Opening
Yesterday afternoon, the Regent Bal Harbour Hotel & Residences (currently the Ritz-Carlton Bal Harbour) held its grand opening celebration. The Regent Bal Harbour is a 5-star hotel with world-class amenities, a 5-star restaurant and gorgeous water views from every hotel room. It will likely be a favorite amongst affluent South Florida vacationers. Prices range from $750 to $8,500 per night.
Take a look at the CBS4 video of the Regent Bal Harbour inaugeration yesterday.
Vue at Brickell – Are Prices Finally Bottoming?
On May 24, 2007, I wrote a blog post entitled “Vue at Brickell – Overpriced or Insanely Overpriced?“. At the time, the average list price of condos available at Vue at Brickell was over $550 per square foot. As many of you now know, and as the blog post explains, the inflated list prices were a direct result of the rampant mortgage fraud that occurred in the building. Since that time, as more and more people became aware of the situation and as a large number of foreclosures in the building hit the market, prices at Vue at Brickell have come down like a ton of bricks.
There are now indications, however, that prices at Vue at Brickell may be close to reaching the bottom. Buyers are finally stepping in. Since the last week of January, there have been 7 condos at Vue at Brickell that went pending. With list prices of $190,000-$199,900 for 1 bedroom condos and $220,000-$249,900 for 2 bedroom condos, it makes sense that buyers are now beginning to accept the risks associated with buying a condo in a building that has a high number of foreclosures. It will be interesting to see the sales prices of these condos at Vue at Brickell once they close. It’ll give us a better indication as to the level of motivation of some of these banks.
Below you’ll find the best deals at Vue at Brickell:
1 Bedrooms
Unit 2111 – short-sale – $162,500
Unit 1710 – short-sale – $162,500
Unit 1211 – short-sale – $162,500
Unit 1413 – short-sale – $162,500
Unit 2307 – foreclosure – $205,000
2 Bedrooms
Unit 1303 – short-sale – $229,900
Unit 1505 – short-sale – $250,000
Unit 1304 – short-sale – $279,900
3 Bedrooms
Unit 3006 – short-sale – $357,000
Unit 3606 – foreclosure – $379,900
The mortgages of three of the four short-sale one bedroom units listed for $162,500 are held with the same lender. This may be an opportunity for an investor to grab all three for a bargain-basement price. There are currently only 8 condos available for rent at Vue at Brickell. Within the past 12 months, the lowest that a one bedroom has ever rented was $1,300 per month. The lowest that a 2 bedroom rented was $1,550 while 3 bedrooms condos bottomed at $2,500 per month.
