Preconstruction Investor Sells Reach Tower Suite At $350k Loss
A buyer has scooped up an amazing deal on one of the last Tower Suites at Brickell City Centre’s Reach Tower. The original buyer had paid $2,175,000 back in August of 2016, then listed the property on the MLS as a resale shortly thereafter.
The buyer was able to snag the opportunity for $1,950,000, represented by our very own Lucas Lechuga with a quick and seamless closing. After the developer fee on the purchase, the price negotiation and commission on the resale, the seller walked away from over $350,000 in the transaction!
The apartment has 2,740 square feet with 3 bedrooms, 4.5 baths and encompasses the entire east side of the building, offering gorgeous views of the neighborhood and Biscayne Bay. You can find the floor plan here. No word on the reason the investor was willing to take such a drastic loss, but congratulations to the buyer! Here’s a tour of the layout:
Do you think any of the pre-construction investors will be able to turn a profit on their resales now that the buildings are all opening?
SLS Lux Reduces Prices On Final Inventory Of Penthouses
I have long said that the best time to buy in a new development is either in the very beginning or at the very end of the sales cycle. That is when the buyer gets the best deal.
In the beginning, the developer offers lower pricing in exchange for being among the first to participate in the project. You don’t receive a tour of the building and many times the sales center isn’t even completed yet. At the end of the project, the developer has a handful of units remaining and is eager to move on to their next project, so are less likely to hold on to top dollar for those last few purchase opportunities.
My personal favorite time to sell an apartment is at the very end of the sales cycle. At that point, the buyer can have a tour of the project, they know that it will actually happen because they can see it, and many times they can still choose their finishes. Some people think that the last few units remaining are the dog apartments of the building, but that is not what my experience has shown. It is typically penthouses because they are so unique.
So, here we are at SLS Lux. After opening sales in the summer of 2014, the partnership between Related Group and The Allen Morris Company is now on the home stretch to Sold Out status. They have five remaining units, all penthouses. In an effort to close out the building as quickly as possible and reflect the new market, they have repriced the last inventory. Here are the new prices:
Penthouse 04
This one has northern exposure, looking over Brickell City Centre to see Downtown Miami and the Biscayne Bay. It has 2,777 square feet and 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms and a den. There are three of these remaining.
Lower Penthouse 04 has been reduced to $2,599,900 from $2,999,900.
Middle Penthouse 04 has been reduced to $2,649,900 from $3,149,900.
Upper Penthouse 04 has been reduced to $2,699,900 from $3,199,900.
The 01 penthouses have 1,888 square feet with 3 bedrooms, 3 baths and a den. They are on the northwest corner of the building, looking over Brickell City Centre into Downtown Miami. Two of these remain, both priced at $1,599,900. The previous price was $1,999,900.
In addition to the amenities and standard finishes in SLS Lux, the penthouses will have upgraded kitchens, 12 foot ceilings, summer kitchens on the terraces and 2 assigned parking spaces. Completion is expected late this year. Here is a preview of the views from the various penthouses.
Photo Tour: $34 Million Miami Beach Home With Rooftop Water Slide Finds A Buyer
It is fun for the whole family! Last week, we took a photo tour of one of my favorite old Miami Beach homes, and this week we get to go on a photo tour of one of my favorite new Miami Beach homes!
This newly built home at 4555 Pine Tree Drive has 16,000 square feet of living space and an additional 3,000 square feet of outdoor living space. Even indoors though, you are able to open the sliding glass walls to give an indoor/outdoor feel and maximize your enjoyment of Miami’s fabulous climate. In total, the home has 6 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms plus 2 powder rooms. Elements of the home include stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean from the master bedroom, a water slide concealed by an elegant glass staircase, a pool with open views and a boat dock that will be built to suit the buyers’ preferences.
We won’t have word until after the closing of who the buyer is or how much the property ultimately sells for, but you can rest assured we will be watching and waiting.
Brickell Heights is 100% Sold Out, Closings Beginning in the Spring
Just ahead of their opening day, Brickell Heights has sold the last of their pre-construction condos. The building is preparing to open on schedule in late April or early May of this year, according to the developer’s representative who we work with, Yenny Hanley.
Of the project’s 690 units, the last to sell were the penthouses, but this is a common occurrence in new projects. Because they are so customized, the penthouses typically take longer to sell. SLS Brickell still has a penthouse available, as does SLS Lux and ECHO Brickell. Back when Infinity at Brickell was doing their initial sell-off, the penthouses were in the last handful of apartments to sell as well. Brickell Heights has been a very successful project, with all of the units being sold for around $500/square foot.
The closings are expected to begin in late April or early May, depending upon the permit process. Equinox is already hard at work signing up new members for their 30,000 square foot location within the project. SoulCycle is also expected to open alongside the residential portion of the project.
It is so exciting to see our new neighborhood coming together!
Midtown 2 Loft Sells For $260/square foot – The Lowest Price Per Foot Since 2013
After 11 months and 3 weeks on the market and an almost 20% discount, a buyer has found a bargain in this enormous loft unit at Midtown 2. The buyer was able to snap up the property for a record amount of $1,425,000, which works out to $260/square foot. It had also been available as a rental for $9,500/month.
The last time an apartment at Midtown 2 sold for such a low price per square foot was way back in 2013. That sale was also a loft unit, albeit smaller. It was Unit L61, a 1,410 square foot loft that sold for $212/foot. According to our Midtown 2 Sales Stats page, the average sales price per square foot has held pretty steadily around $420-$425/square over the last 2 years.
Despite the low sales price, the seller still did quite well in the transaction. They had purchased the unit back in 2012 as a part of a bulk sale for $800,000. The property is a beautifully redesigned 4 bedroom with 3.5 baths, 30 foot ceilings and over 5,400 square feet of living area! Full disclosure, you can see in the MLS photos that the construction of Hyde Midtown is partially obstructing the view, but this is part of city life.
With the new wave of inventory coming up over the next year, how much more do you think prices will be affected in Midtown?
MUSE Residences in Sunny Isles Has Topped Off
Property Markets Group’s Muse condos, the 47 story ultra-luxury development in Sunny Isles, has officially topped off. The construction broke ground in September of 2015 and the foundation pour took place in March of 2016. The developers expect to see completion by the fall of 2018.
The residences have between 2-5 bedrooms and boast terraces that are 60 feet wide with intracoastal and direct ocean views. Each Muse condo will be serviced by a private elevator with biometric security. The units will be delivered fully finished with custom Italian cabinetry and personalized art from Helidon Xhixha. The twisting tower was designed by Carlos Ott, the same designer as ECHO Brickell, which we toured last week. Muse Residences has 68 total apartments starting at $4 million up to the $18.5 million upper penthouse. The penthouse’s terrace is a whopping 720 square feet!
Here are some photos of the construction progress, courtesy of Property Markets Group:
Inside ECHO Brickell: Construction Tour Of The $42 Million Carlos Ott Penthouse
ECHO Brickell is topping off this week and we were lucky enough to be the first to get a hard hat tour of the 57 story project, including the Carlos Ott penthouse. The penthouse covers the entire 56th & 57th floor and is the most dramatic, most expensive penthouse in the history of Brickell.
With over 10,000 interior square feet, the residence will have 4 bedrooms, 7.5 baths, a den, fitness center, service suite and 30 foot indoor lap pool and spa overlooking the Biscayne Bay. In the video, you can already see the dramatic 14 foot ceilings and double height living room, giving the living room a 28 foot ceiling with floor to ceiling windows. The project will offer top of the line biometric security for the elevators, a dramatic 50 million gallon fish tank in the lobby and round the clock concierge services. The penthouse is custom designed by Carlos Ott and is priced at $42.2 million.
Here is a video of our hard hat tour of the penthouse. Please remember that this is a raw video of the tour and the property is still very much a construction site.
Here is a virtual tour of what the property will look like once finished.
Stay tuned to the blog as we post construction tours of other units to celebrate ECHO Brickell’s milestone! There are 13 remaining purchase opportunities with prices starting at $2 million.
Latin Singer-Songwriter Ricardo Montaner Lists Miami Beach Home For $11M
Ricardo Montaner, the South American singer-songwriter who is famous for singing love songs. Over the course of his 30+ year career, he has sold over 22 million albums and I want to sing 22 million love songs to his Miami Beach waterfront estate, which hit the market this week for $11 million.
I showed this Miami Beach luxury home several years back, when it was being quietly offered as an off-market deal and there is just something special about the place. The property is located at 4950 Pinetree Drive in Miami Beach. It is a corner lot on a secluded part of the street that is extremely quiet despite being in the middle of Miami Beach. Because the house osits on a 46,000 square foot corner lot, the estate boasts a whopping 400 linear feet of water frontage!! That’s more than most condo developments!
The house owned by Ricardo Montaner was constructed in 1939 and could use a bit of modernization but is absolutely stunning. There is a gorgeous atrium that I could imagine having fabulous dinner parties in, or a romantic dinner for 2 in a setting so disgustingly romantic, it would be fit for The Bachelor TV show. The poolside cabana is large enough to be a single family home of its own, with a rooftop observation deck.
Overall, the house has nearly 8,000 square feet of living space under a/c with 8 bedrooms, 7 bathrooms and 1 half bath. Sadly, I did not see the Ricardo Montaner home on the list at the Miami Beach Historic Preservation Board. I’ll be praying that whoever is the ultimate buyer of the property doesn’t destroy this gem to make way for a gauche McMansion with drop ceilings in the gameroom.
3900 Alton Brings Convenience, Style & Tranquility To Mid-Beach
Nestled just between the 41st Street business district and the Biscayne Bay is a 10 acre development site that will soon be home to a boutique building, 3900 Alton. The project was designed by Richard Bofill and will have 78 units in 8 floors.
Each of the residences will have a chef-grade Poliform kitchen with Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances, 10 foot ceilings, floor to ceiling energy efficient windows, frameless glass showers and Savant Home Automation systems. The 3 garden residences will have lush private gardens designed by Naturalficial, other units will have spacious balconies with glass railings. All residences will come with one parking space, 24 hour valet for guests and access to the Tesla House car. Each owner will receive VIP access to the Beach Club at the Nobu Hotel and Eden Roc. Many residences will have private elevators, and this is one of the only projects in the area that also has Shabbat elevators for those who observe.
Onsite amenities include a 3rd floor landscaped pool terrace with lounge seating, sunset bay view deck, lounging cabanas and daybeds, a children’s pool, a poolside refreshment & cocktail bar, towel service as well as a summer kitchen and yoga area. Art installations for the lobby, pool deck and other common areas are by Loris Cecchini, Fernando Mastrangelo, Philip Taaffe and Christoph Keller. Indoors, residents will enjoy a private dining room, children’s playroom, secure wine vault and storage, a light-filled fitness center with sauna, steam and changing area, 24 hour business center and social lounge with gaming area, library and media room.
The VIP Beach Club membership will give residents access to cabanas, beach lounges, towel service and beach butlers as well as preferential access to golfing and tennis at the Miami Beach Golf Club. The building will have community paddle boards, kayaks and bicycles for the residents, with the house car available to take people to Sunset Harbour or the Eden Roc.
Aside from the features and amenities, I really like the location of this project. It is in the middle of an area that is largely residential with single family homes, so a luxury condo development is refreshing. The views are spectacular and the project is walking distance to both the Talmudic University, multiple synagogues as well as the St. Patrick’s church and school. Mt. Sinai Hospital is the biggest employer on Miami Beach and is a bike ride away, along with the 41st Street business district. The access to the Julia Tuttle is very easy for those who would like to visit the Design District, Midtown, Brickell or Downtown, among other attractions on the mainland.
The construction is slated to begin early this year, with completion in 2019. Prices start just under $800,000 for 1 bedroom plus den garden residences up to $2.3 million for a 2,100 square foot 4 bedroom residence. See below for the 10+ acre site plan, renderings video, sample views and sales brochure. What do you think?
The Underline Public Meeting: Preview & Give Feedback Of The Brickell Backyard Plans
If you have been curious about the plans of The Underline, Miami’s upcoming 10 mile linear park, now is your opportunity. The Miami-Dade Transportation & Public Works Departments, and Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Departments will be holding a public meeting this Thursday, Janaury 19 with the Friends of The Underline initiative.
During the meeting, the preliminary design proposals for Phase 1: Brickell Backyard will be discussed by the James Corner Field Operations design team. The Brickell Backyard is the name for the span of The Underline that runs under the Metrorail tracks from the Miami River to SW 13th Street (Coral Way). The site is currently grossly underused, with only a collection of bus stops and a temporary outdoor gym. Along the Brickell Station, there is a beautiful natural coral rock ledge that will be incorporated into the park.
The Underline is a proposed 10-mile greenway with urban biking and pedestrian trails and park amenities beneath the county’s Metrorail, in Miami-Dade County’s Rapid Transit Right of Way, between the Miami River north of Brickell and Dadeland South stations. The project’s vision is to enhance connectivity, mobility, sustainability and biking safety for hundreds of thousands of Miami-Dade residents and visitors.
To see the plans in detail, visit Southside Elementary on Thursday night from 5:30pm-8pm. The meeting will be held in the cafeteria. Southside Elementary is on the corner of SW 1st Avenue & 13th Street, just across the street from Infinity at Brickell. There is street parking around Infinity & SLS Brickell, along with a surface lot across the street. If you are a transit rider, the Brickell Station Metromover & Metrorail stops are just across the street to the west of the school. We’ll see you there!
