After three years of construction, closings are set to begin next week for units at Aria on the Bay. The 53-story development received its Temporary Certificate of Occupancy last week. According to in-house sales reps, ten percent of the units at Aria on the Bay remain unsold, with prices for one- to three-bedroom residences ranging from $422,900 to $1,682,900. All units feature porcelain tiled flooring throughout, Italkraft kitchen cabinets, Bosch stainless steel appliances, and 9-foot high ceilings with floor-to-ceiling glass windows.
Aria on the Bay is located in Edgewater Miami at 1770 North Bayshore Drive. It was developed by Melo Group, designed by Arquitectonica, and will include 648 residential units.
A First Look Inside the Recently Completed Paraiso Bay
One cannot help but be awestruck by the rapid transformation taking place throughout Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood. Compared to just five years ago, it has grown tremendously in terms of development and density. With the pending completion of Related Group’s Paraiso District, Edgewater is about to get a whole lot bigger.
Paraiso District is Related Group’s largest residential development outside of New York City. The private, gated complex is situated on a close to five acre site with 500 feet of water frontage. It also includes a beach club (appropriately named Paraiso Beach Club), which is exclusive to Paraiso residents, as well as a waterfront restaurant by James Beard Award-winning Chef Michael Schwartz called Amara at Paraiso. In terms of density, however, Paraiso District, with less than 1,400 total units, will be smaller than Related’s second largest residential development – Icon Brickell.
Earlier this month, closings began for units at Paraiso Bay – the first of four towers comprising Edgewater’s Paraiso District. The other three towers – Paraiso Bayviews, GranParaiso, and One Paraiso – will all be completed and delivered by year-end.
A few weeks ago, I met up once again with Related’s President of Condominium Division Carlos Rosso – this time for a grand tour of the Paraiso District grounds and recently completed Paraiso Bay. Paraiso Bay is a 55-story tower designed by Arquitectonica. It has 346 total units, each offering direct, unobstructed views of Biscayne Bay. Paraiso Bay has a laundry list of amenities which include: clubroom with billiards, catering kitchen, and multimedia facilities; state-of-the-art fitness center; full-service spa with men’s and women’s steam and sauna facilities; private screening room with state-of-the-art audio/visual equipment and theater-style seating; wine cellar and tasting salon; children’s playroom; teen’s game room; resort deck with circular, zero-entry heated pool, outdoor spa, poolside cabanas, and summer kitchen area; tennis center with 2 lighted tennis courts and multipurpose court; beach club; 24-hour concierge; and 24-hour valet parking. Additionally, residents of Paraiso Bay and GranParaiso will share a 2-lane bowling alley and full-service bar below their shared resort deck. At the time of my tour, I was told that just 25 percent of the amenities had been delivered. Keep that in mind when viewing the photos below…75 percent of the amenities are still in the works!
Gran Paraiso Construction Video Showcases Jaw-dropping Views from Paraiso District
Construction of Related’s Paraiso District is in the home stretch. Along with Amara at Paraiso – a Michael Schwartz restaurant which opened last week along Biscayne Bay – Paraiso District is comprised of four luxury, high-rise towers, each scheduled to open later this year: Paraiso Bay, which is nearly finished with delivery expected this quarter; One Paraiso – expected to begin closings in Spring of this year; Paraiso Bayviews – expected to begin delivering units this Summer; and Gran Paraiso, which is very close to topping off and is aiming to begin closings this Fall.
The drone video below showcases the jaw-dropping views that one can expect from the condos at Paraiso District:
Paraiso Bay is completely sold out; all that remains at One Paraiso is a single penthouse which is asking $2.1M; Paraiso Bayviews has limited inventory starting at $579K; and Gran Paraiso has 1 to 4 bedroom options available starting at $800K.
Edgewater Penthouse Accepts Only Bitcoin
Have you jumped on the Bitcoin Bandwagon yet? If not, you cannot buy this penthouse!
That’s right, the seller of the Penthouse 2206 at Edgewater’s Platinum Condominium does not want your financed offer, or your cash offer for that matter. They accept ONLY Bitcoin and are asking $33 for the 1 bedroom unit. According to our handy currency conversion tool, this amounts to $542,000 USD.
While I commend the seller for their attempt at profiting from the buzzword of the hour, there are some fundamental flaws in their strategy.
FLAW 1: Alienating Potential Buyers Who Would Pay Cash
Whenever you are offering something for sale, you want that item to be available to as many people as possible. This is the reason Realtors are always saying to remove the clutter and personal items from your home before you put it on the market. In order to achieve maximum profit, you want the potential buyers to be able to see themselves living in the apartment and making it their home (or to see a solid profit in an investment). If you ONLY accept Bitcoin, you alienate all of those who would pay cash or get a mortgage.
FLAW 2: The Price
If you convert the price of $33 Bitcoin to US Dollars, it comes out to $542,000 (as of today). Even the biggest two bedroom in the building isn’t offered for that much! Check here to see the other available apartments in the building. They’re priced nowhere close to this unit. In fact, over the last 6 months the only two 1 bedroom apartments to sell both went for HALF of the asking price at PH 2206. Even the two bedroom apartments that sold traded for more than $100,000 less than this listing.
This is a hyped-up attempt to get away with overpricing an OK apartment.
FLAW 3: These Photos
Ah, these photos. If you’re going to post a listing that is overpriced by double, at least give us some photos that attempt to justify the price. Let’s go through them…
This one is great if you want to see a blurry depiction of what the view was like in 2014. Since then, at least 3 towers have been constructed within the frame.
The gym is nice enough, but the image could be sharper.
Same with the pool.
There are lockers and a sauna.
This photo was also taken in 2014. You can see IconBay in the background, but not the other towers that have been built around.
This photo is so blurry, you can’t even make out the name of the building behind the front desk.
The kitchen is nice enough.
Apparently there is a rule in this apartment that prohibits hanging photos or wall decorations by tenants.
So, there’s a washer/dryer in the apartment. I’m not sure this photo is a testament to how spacious the laundry area is, but at least you know it’s there, right?
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All-in-all, I think this listing should serve as a huge warning to bitcoin buyers. This seller is clearly trying to pull one over on the market and profit from the hype. BUYER BEWARE!
The boutique ultra-luxury building will be home to just 100 residences with only 1 or 2 homes per floor. Each home has both a sunrise view over the bay and a sunset view over the horizon. From the upper floors, even the Everglades are visible!
On the 30th floor is a luxurious sky lounge for the residents with each room designed to maximize a different time of day. Each residence also includes a membership to Luxury Attaché, an around-the-clock and around-the-world lifestyle concierge.
Prices range from $1.5 million to $10 million for the residences and up to $14 million for residences in the “Les Grandes Maisons” collection.
Want To Be The First To Try Out The Restaurant At Paraiso Beach Club?
Last week, we were excited to bring you a photo preview of Amara at Paraiso, the Michael Schwartz-owned waterfront restaurant at Paraiso Beach Club. This week, we can help you to be the first to try it!
Debuting the new bayfront eatery in proper Miami style (just ahead of condo closings and during Art Basel), Mr. Schwartz is opening for a special pop-up experience December 6-9. Dinner seatings are available from 7-9:30pm each night by reservation only.
Guests at Amara at Paraiso will dine on a special preview menu that includes snacks, cocktails, wine, beer, and four courses that are served family-style. The cost is $189 per person. Below is a peek at the menu, and you can reserve your spot here.
If you would like to move to Paraiso, price ranges include:
Paraiso Bay: SOLD OUT, closings begin January 2018 One Paraiso: Four bedroom penthouse available for $2.85M. Expected completion March/April 2018. GranParaiso: Two bedroom plus den plans from $978k, three bedroom plus den plans from $1.33M, four bedroom plus den plans from $1.67M, penthouses from $2M. Estimated delivery April/May 2018. Paraiso Bayviews: One bedroom plans from $570k, Two bedroom plans from $630k. Estimated delivery March/April 2018.
Paraiso Bay Homes: Prices from $2M, closings begin early 2018.
The Ultimate Market Stat Monday: Downtown Development Authority’s Mid-Year Report
Despite the fact that many media outlets and whispers in the marketplace would leave you to believe that the cards are stacked against us in the Miami condo market, things really aren’t so bad according to the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) Mid-Year 2017 Report. As they state in the report, “2017 has not been the best of times, but it hasn’t been the worst of times either.”
I have included the full 28 page report below, but also a synopsis…
RENTALS
The report separates the rental market into two sub-categories. Conventional rentals are the rental-only buildings that are all managed by one company. 2017 has brought 969 new rental units to the market, leaving just under 3,600 under construction. The condo rentals are considered shadow inventory since there is no way to tell whether a unit would be a rental, resale, or final sale until after delivery.
Amazingly, despite increased inventory, rental prices have increased slightly in conventional rental communities. I had previously been skeptical about the rental community market with so much inventory going up, but our neighborhood is very attractive and people are flocking in.
The segments of the rental market showing the biggest price gains are 1 bedrooms and 3 bedrooms, showing 3.4% and 3.6% growth since last year respectively. Studios are showing a slight decrease in price, but I suspect that this is due to the fact that tenants who would typically take a studio are now taking one bedrooms. Three bedrooms are less plentiful in the neighborhood, so are almost always a good investment opportunity.
PRE-CONSTRUCTION
The market in new developments is also hanging on. The researchers report that 2016 and 2017 YTD have garnered about 50% of the sales experienced in 2015, which experienced 25%-50% less than 2014. It’s undeniable that things have changed, but we will survive and the projects will be sold.
While the market has slowed markedly, projects that are currently under construction and 55%-60% sold do not seem to be in distress, according to the researchers.
One submarket that could flourish in the upcoming 18 months is the smaller-scale boutique project market. According to the report and our experience, these developments tend to capitalize on infill lots between the larger developments and do very well when the larger buildings slow down.
RESALES
Our resales are facing a tremendous amount of inventory with a 6% decline in overall pricing since last year. From July 2016 to June 2017 there were an average of 99 resales sold. That rate needs to be raised by an additional 500-700 listings sold per month to reach pricing equilibrium.
The conclusion of the report is that because so many new construction projects continue to be delivered and fewer projects are announced, we could see some stability in 2018 if nothing crazy happens.
A Peek Inside Amara at Paraiso; Paraiso Construction Update
Despite Hurricane Irma’s damper on the Paraiso party, the project is preparing to begin closings. The damaged crane was successfully removed and Gran Paraiso should be topped off by the end of the year. As they put the finishing touches on the first residential units, let’s have a look at “Amara at Paraiso,” the onsite restaurant by Michael Schwartz.
The Edgewater mega-project had planned to begin closings last month, but were delayed by the storm. Since then, everyone has been working diligently to bring the closings back to the anticipated schedule (or as close as possible). As of now, here is the most updated completion schedule:
Aria on the Bay Lowers Deposit Requirement After Sales Benchmark
To celebrate a new sales benchmark, Melo Group has once again reduced the required deposit amount at Edgewater’s Aria on the Bay. The project, which topped off in April, has now sold over 85% of their condos. New buyers are now required to put down only 20% of the final purchase price.
We were treated to a hard-hat tour back in June and were very impressed to see that nearly all of the buildings units have at least a partial bay view, but most have expansive views from spacious scalloped terraces. Melo Group and Arquitectonica really did an amazing job on the building’s design. It offers maximized views for the residents and also a beautiful design for passers by.
During the tour, we were also lucky to be able to tour the penthouse that Miami Marlins superstar Giancarlo Stanton had recently purchased. We were not allowed to know which penthouse was his, but since we went through all of them, it is a pretty good bet that we saw it. I have my own theory of which one he chose…
Back to the remaining sales opportunities, the remaining apartments range in price from the mid $400,000’s up to $1.9 million. There are options remaining from the lines with semi-private elevators as well as private elevators. Closings are expected to begin early next year.
Below, you can see some new renderings that show how the apartments will look once they are furnished, and you can click here to see our review of the project after the construction tour. We were able to see real views from several different levels of the building, along with the actual finishes. If you would like an in-person presentation, just reach out. We are happy to show off this project.
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