myBrickell Closings to Begin Next Month

Closings for myBrickell condos are expected to begin next month.  The building has been completed but the developer must first wait to receive its TCO from the city before closings can commence.  MyBrickell represents the first newly built condo highrise in Brickell to begin closings since the condo boom and bust of yesteryear.  The Miami real estate market has been on an absolute tear since preconstruction condo sales for myBrickell were announced in October 2011.  In fact, last month marked the 24th straight month in which the median sales price rose for both single family homes and condominiums in Miami.

MyBrickell has 192 total units comprised of studios, 1 and 2 bedroom residences.  It is important to note that myBrickell does not have a parking garage.  Units begin on the second floor with the lobby and retail space occupying the entire first floor.  The 1 and 2 bedroom units will come with valet parking.  The studios, however, are out of luck.  Those who rent or own a studio will need to rely on their own two feet and public transportation.  Or, they can look into obtaining a parking space in a nearby garage (good luck with that one though).

Brickell rental inventory has been thin over the past year.  The emergence of new rental units from myBrickell should bring a sigh of relief from renters who have seen rental prices in Brickell climb steadily over the past three-plus years.  Despite the valet-only situation, I expect there to be a tremendous amount of interest from both renters and buyers for the one and two bedroom units at myBrickell.  It will be interesting, however, to see what happens with the studios.  Public transportation has gotten better over the past couple of years so I’m sure people can make do without a car if they really tried.  The big question, however, is how many will be willing.

According to the myBrickell brochure, units at myBrickell will be delivered with “designer berber carpeting throughout living, dining and bedrooms”.  Kitchens and bathrooms will be delivered with “imported designer tile”.  Splash on a coat of paint and hang some window treatments, and these units will be move-in ready.  I expect the first residents to move into the building by late January to early February.

If you have an interest in buying or renting a unit at myBrickell, please contact me.  I already have one rental listing and should have more in the weeks ahead.  Once closings begin, I will contact, on a first-come/first-served basis, those who have expressed an interest in either buying or renting a unit at myBrickell.

If you are a contract holder and are looking to retain the services of a reliable and experienced real estate agent to sell or lease your unit at myBrickell, look no further.  I take pride in my work and handle each and every one of my listings with the care and attention that they deserve.  If you have any questions, feel free to reach me on my cell at 786-247-6332 or via email at [email protected].

myBrickell floor plans:

Mybrickell floor flans by Lucas Lechuga

New Exclusive Listing – 2 Bedroom with 16-foot Ceilings at Icon Brickell III (Viceroy Tower) – $760,000

Brand new listing at Icon Brickell Tower 3 (Viceroy Tower).  I likely won’t have the listing up on the MLS until early next week because I first want to have it professionally photographed. Yesterday evening, however, I used Google Glass to record a walk-through of the unit so I could give a few of my clients a special preview.  The video is at the bottom of this post.

The 2 bedroom, 2 bath corner unit has 16-foot ceilings, glass tiled floors and a fabulous view of Biscayne Bay and the city.  The condo is being sold fully furnished.  Tower 3 is the only tower at Icon Brickell that allows short-term rentals.  That’s great for investors.  The owner does not have the unit in the hotel program but recently started using an outside company to handle the short-term rentals on her behalf.  To give you an idea as to the kind of income you can expect during high-season, the unit got rented for $7,000 for three weeks from the end of December to mid-January.  The owner gets to keep 80% of it.

Asking price for the condo, including the furniture, is $760,000.  Please contact me if you or someone you know has an interest in learning more about this spectacular residence.  I can be reached on my cell at 786-247-6332 or via email at [email protected].

Update: I have since had a professional photographer take pictures of the unit. Below you will find a slideshow with those pictures.

Brickell Heights Sales Launch Party

Yesterday night, I attended the Brickell Heights sales launch party.  Jorge Perez, Chairman & CEO of The Related Group, and Harvey J. Spevak, President & CEO of Equinox, spoke at the event.  I recorded the presentations and uploaded those videos onto YouTube.  Judging by the empty seats in the row in front of me, it may not seem like the party was well attended but I assure you that it was.  There were lots of people standing along the sides and towards the back of the room.  The footage isn’t great due to the bright screen behind the stage but you can hear everything clearly.

After a brief introduction and unveiling of the Brickell Heights promo video, Harvey J. Spevak spoke followed by Jorge Perez.  Mr. Spevak discussed the impact that Equinox has had on real estate sales for residential developments in New York City with which his brand has been associated.  Equinox will have 35,000 square feet of dedicated space at Brickell Heights.  That will make it the largest Equinox club in South Florida.  Brickell Heights will also have a 3,000 square foot spin studio separate from Equinox called Soul Cycle.  Mr. Spevak noted that Equinox Brickell will have an elite team of personal trainers – some of the best in the world – which will work with members not only at the club but also at a member’s residence if they so desire.

Jorge Perez kept his speech short and sweet but I think he did a terrific job in driving home the message that Brickell Heights is going to be at the center of the action in Miami.  Located across the street from Mary Brickell Village and just one block from the upcoming Brickell City Centre, residents of Brickell Heights will have hundreds of shops, restaurants and bars at their doorstep.  Mr. Perez also explained how Equinox came into the picture.  He envisions a very healthy and active lifestyle for residents of Brickell Heights.  He refers to Equinox as the “Rolls Royce of fitness” and, therefore, a perfect match for a luxury condo development such as Brickell Heights.

Below you will find four videos which cover the presentations that were given at last night’s Brickell Heights sales launch event:

Introduction

Brickell Heights promo video

Harvey J. Spevak, President & CEO of Equinox, presents

Jorge Perez, Chairman & CEO of The Related Group, presents

Brickell Heights Sales Presentation Through Google Glass

Brickell Heights will officially launch to the public starting next week on December 9th.  However, reservations are now being accepted through select VIP brokers (such as myself) as part of the developer’s Friends & Family program.  The starting prices shown towards the bottom of this page are for Friends & Family and are subject to change once the project officially launches next week.  Brickell Heights is a two-tower condo development.  At this time, only units in the east tower are available for reservation.  Keep in mind that the east tower is closer to the water and will have better views than those residing in the west tower, so now is the time to act if you are contemplating making a reservation.

Yesterday afternoon, I met with the Brickell Heights Sales Director and she was kind enough to give me a presentation while I was wearing Google Glass to record it.  At a later date, I will go more into detail about Google Glass and explain how I plan to apply this new technology to my real estate business.  I have very big and exciting plans for it, so stay tuned!  I will say, however, that at this time, Google Glass is not available to the public and can only be acquired by invitation.  As far as I know, I am the only real estate agent in Miami who currently has Google Glass.  In fact, there aren’t many people in Miami period who have it at this time.

The sales presentation for Brickell Heights was given to me in English and Spanish.  Towards the bottom of this page you will find the English version followed immediately by the Spanish version.  Before we get to those, I first want to provide a general overview of this exciting preconstruction condo development.  As I mentioned in my last blog post, location is going to be a HUGE selling point for Brickell Heights because it will be located right in between Mary Brickell Village and the upcoming, 5.4 million square foot mixed-use development called Brickell City Centre.

Brickell Heights – Overview

• Address – 850 South Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida 33131
• Developer – The Related Group in collaboration with Crescent Heights
• Architect – Internationally-renowned architectural firm Arquitectonica
• Interior Design – Rockwell Group
• Number of units – the east tower of Brickell Heights has 358 total units
• Number of floors – the east tower of Brickell Heights has 48 stories
• Fitness – Equinox

Brickell Heights – Building Features

• Dramatic double-height lobby designed by David Rockwell
• World-class façade installation by renowned Argentinean artist Fabian Burgos
• High-design condominiums with extraordinary contemporary finishes
• Luxuriously landscaped pool terrace at the 8^th floor with three pools including a lap pool for Equinox members
• Elegantly appointed screening room available for private screenings
• Exclusive residents-only rooftop Sky Pool deck with breathtaking views of Biscayne Bay and Miami Skyline
• High-performance fitness studio
• Equinox fitness center with 30,000 square feet across three levels
• Soul Cycle Studio with 3,000 square feet
• Two beautifully designed Entertainment Rooms available for private, social and business events
• Engaging Kids’ Club dedicated to children’s activities
• On-demand Concierge service with 24/7 multilingual staff, 24/7 security and receiving desk for mail and other deliveries
• High-speed Internet access in all amenity areas

Unit Descriptions and Price Ranges (*Friends & Family pricing)

The layouts indicated above are for units residing on floors 10-40.  Larger floor plans are available starting on the 41st floor.  Contact me for details.  1 bedroom units increase $2,000 per floor while 2 bedroom units increase $3,000 per floor.

Brickell Heights – Deposit Payment Structure

• 10% of purchase price at reservation
• 10% of purchase price at contract (1^st quarter of 2014)
• 20% of purchase price at ground-breaking (mid-2014)
• 10% of purchase price at top-off (mid-2015)
• 50% of purchase price at closing  (end of 2016)

Now that we have all that out of the way, let’s watch some videos.

Brickell Heights sales presentation in English:

Brickell Heights sales presentation in Spanish:

Even if you do not have the means or motivation to acquire a condo in Miami at this time, I think most anyone reading this blog will find the video below fascinating.  It does an amazing job in capturing the enormity of Brickell City Centre.  At 5.4 million square feet across 9.1 acres, Brickell City Centre is an absolute monster and will forever change the landscape of Miami.  Brickell is already one of the most sought after neighborhoods to live in all of South Florida.  You throw into the mix a development of that size costing over one billion $US, and you are going to have a world-class neighborhood for the ages. In the video, the five large, empty lots just north and northeast of the Brickell Heights building site is where Brickell City Centre will be located. It is currently under construction and is projected to be completed in 2016, the same year that Brickell Heights is scheduled for completion.  The arrows that I included in the video point out the site location for Brickell Heights.

For additional information related to Brickell Heights, visit my Brickell Heights building profile page.  There you will find renderings, floor plans and an e-brochure.  If you have an interest in reserving a unit, or have any questions whatsoever, please contact me immediately.  I expect this project to sell out quickly and am already amazed by the response that I have had for it thus far.  When it comes to convenience and having everything at your doorstep, you really can’t ask for a better location than Brickell Heights – especially at these prices!

I can be reached via email at [email protected] or on my cell at 786-247-6332.

To stay on top of the latest news related to the Miami real estate market, circle Miami Condo Investments on Google+.  Be sure to also subscribe to our YouTube channel to catch all our upcoming videos through Google Glass.

Brickell Heights Development Site Tour Through Google Glass

Brickell Heights is the latest pre-construction condo project to be developed by Related Group.  Location is going to be a HUGE selling point for this development due to its proximity to Mary Brickell Village and the upcoming Brickell City Centre.  Residents of Brickell Heights will be just steps away from 5 million square feet of an array of luxury shops, restaurants and entertainment.  Seeing is believing though, so I decided to hop in my car to give everyone a tour of the development site using Google Glass.  You will see that Brickell Heights is directly across the street from Mary Brickell Village and just one block south of Brickell City Centre.

Update: I now have Brickell Heights floor plans, renderings and an e-brochure on my building profile page.

Miami Condo Investments Free Mobile App Available for Download on iTunes and Google Play

For those new to the website, or those who might be unaware, Miami Condo Investments has its own mobile app.  It is free and available for download on iTunes, for the iPhone and iPad, and on Google Play, for all Android mobile devices.  I released the iPhone version back in December 2009 and followed it up with the Android version about two and a half years later in May 2012.  I may be a bit biased, but it truly is an amazing app.  In many ways, the real estate app was ahead of its time when I released it in 2009.  It still remains as powerful as ever though and I personally use on it on a daily basis.  In fact, I recently made the jump from using an iPhone to an Android phone and it was the first app I downloaded.

I would love to hear your thoughts and feedback on the app.  I am hoping to release an updated version sometime in 2014 and welcome any ideas for it that you might have.

Introducing the Brickell and Downtown Miami Condos Google+ Community Room

Let’s hope that three time’s a charm.  Since launching this website in 2007, I have attempted on two separate occasions to introduce a forum which would allow those with an interest in Miami real estate to communicate and share with one another related content such as pictures, videos and new stories.  Both attempts failed, mainly due to bots who would litter the forum with an insane amount of spam.  It was impossible to keep up with and a huge waste of time even attempting to do so.

A year ago next week, Google launched a service called Google+ Communities which allows people to form groups based around a specific topic.  Since then, I have joined a variety of communities and have been very impressed with how clean and spam-free these groups can be.  This is mainly due to the requirement in which participants must log-in using their Google account.  The fact that there is a face and profile attached to a name keeps everyone, for the most part, on their best behavior.

Earlier this year, I created a Google+ community room called Brickell and Downtown Miami condos.  It is my hope that this will end up being a sort of round-table for all interested parties to discuss and share freely content related to the topic at hand.  As stated above, to join you must have a Google account.  This helps keep the forum clean and free of spam.  Presently, there are 29 members.  My goal is to get that number up to 100 members by the end of next month and 1,000 by the end of 2014.  The success of this room, however, will heavily rely on your participation.  So, please take the time to join the communities room, introduce yourself and share a piece of content if you have anything interesting to share.

o

Introducing Nine at Mary Brickell Village

I am pleased to introduce Miami’s newest luxury condo development – Nine at Mary Brickell Village.  The condo development, which is currently under construction, will be situated directly atop the western portion of Mary Brickell Village.  The co-developers – Starwood Capital Group and LYND – had planned to deliver the building as a luxury rental development but it was announced just a few days ago that upgrades will be made to their original plans and that the units will instead be sold as condominiums.

Construction is well underway and the development is projected to be completed in May 2014.  Nine at Mary Brickell Village will have 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units starting from $300,000.  There are 30 available floor plans ranging from 744 to 2,098 square feet.  Residences will boast beautifully appointed kitchens with stainless steel appliances, quartz countertops and backsplashes, designer fixtures and hardware, oversized mirrors, spacious walk-in closets and large soaking tubs.  Units will have 9 to 11 foot ceilings.

I should have official pricing for units in the coming days but it is expected to average $475 per square foot with finished flooring.  In fact, all units at Nine at Mary Brickell Village will be delivered with imported porcelain tile flooring in a wood grain finish and solar window shades.  $475 per square foot is very well priced compared to pre-construction developments that have recently launched in Brickell at $500 to $600 per square foot.  The great thing about this development is that it is in the heart of Brickell sitting atop of Mary Brickell Village and will be just a few blocks away from Brickell CityCentre once it is completed.  Location doesn’t get any better than this!

I expect this development to sell out quickly so if you have an interest be sure to contact me immediately.  I should have pricing, floor plans, reservation agreements and wire instructions available in the coming days.

Below is the deposit schedule to purchase a condo at Nine at Mary Brickell Village:

• 10% due at reservation (within the next week)
• 10% due at contract (within the next 45-60 days)
• 10% at top-off
• Balance due at closing

Fully Furnished 2 Bedroom + Den with 16-foot Ceilings at Icon Brickell II – $5,400/mo

Within the next month, a client of mine will be closing on a 2 bedroom + den at Icon Brickell Tower 2.  The unit is very unique because it features soaring 16-foot ceilings from the 41st floor.  This is the highest floor in the building that has high ceilings.  The unit also includes motorized shades in both bedrooms, three crystal chandeliers, TUI furniture package and a state-of-the-art electronics package. Electronics package includes: Blu-ray 3D player, 3D TV and 3D surround sound system. Wake up each morning to a breathtaking view of Biscayne Bay from the 41st floor. 1 assigned parking space. Rent includes basic cable TV, Internet & water.  Asking price is $5,400 per month.  If you have an interest please contact me at 786-247-6332.