I was notified yesterday that rentals are now available in tower 2 of Icon Brickell. Tower 2 is the southeast tower of the Icon Brickell development. The units are renting fast! 56 rentals were made available on Saturday and as of yesterday 15 had already been rented.
Below, you will find the floor plans that are available along with the starting prices. The rent price includes 800 channels of cable, high-speed Internet, one parking space, water and a health club membership. Pets are NOT allowed.
Call me at 305-428-3860 or email me at [email protected] if you would like to schedule a showing.
H floor plan – 1 bedroom/1 bath – 732 square feet – starting at $1690
G floor plan – 1 bedroom/1 bath – 984 square feet – starting at $2000
G-Rev floor plan – 1 bedroom/1 bath – 1035 square feet – starting at $2100
E floor plan – 2 bedroom/2 bath – 1327 square feet – starting at $2750
C floor plan – 2 bedroom/2 bath – 1500 square feet – starting at $2850
B floor plan – 2 bedroom/2 bath – 1503 square feet – starting at $2950
D floor plan – 2 bedroom/2 bath – 1600 square feet – starting at $2500
There currently aren’t any studio or 3 bedroom rentals available.
Jennifer Lopez & Marc Anthony To Acquire 10 Units at Icon Brickell
I confirmed that Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony placed 10 units under contract at Icon Brickell earlier this afternoon. People magazine reported last month that they had acquired a penthouse condo in the same development as well. It looks like Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony are very bullish on the future of Brickell Miami. I heard last week from a separate source that prices at Icon Brickell were recently reduced to around $350 to $400 per square foot.
Update: Marc Anthony ended up losing two of the ten condos at Icon Brickell as part of a divorce settlement with wife-number-four Shannon De Lima. The two Miami luxury condos were valued at over $2 million.
Fannie Mae Approved Condo Buildings in Florida
As of June 1, 2009, Fannie Mae updated their website to reflect the condo developments in Florida that are now approved for financing.
The following is a list of recent condo developments in South Florida that are now Fannie Mae approved:
Drive Down Brickell Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard – Video
I must say that I’m very impressed with how far video technology has come along over the past year. Gone are the days of YouTube’s grainy video quality. YouTube now allows people to upload and view HD videos. Don’t expect the HD quality that you see on your HD TV but it’s still a big leap for Internet video.
Here are a couple of videos that I shot Friday night while driving down Brickell Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard. (It may take a while to load if you’re using a slow Internet connection). You’ll notice Icon Brickell, Epic and One Miami in the video below:
New Miami Condos – Closing Rates for February 2009
It’s been a few months since my last Miami condo closing rate update. The percentage of closed units for 25 major condo developments are provided below, starting with the first development to begin closings. Four condo developments have been added: Icon Brickell, Everglades on the Bay, Infinity at Brickell and Epic. You’ll find these towards the bottom of this post.
Below, you will find the date that each condo development began closings followed by the number of closed units in each condo development:
With the exception of Onyx on the Bay and 50 Biscayne, the first group above has remained unchanged. Onyx on the Bay was able to close one additional condo while 50 Biscayne was able to close two.
Quantum on the Bay and Plaza on Brickell once again were able to show a decent improvement in their closing rate. Quantum on the Bay closed an additional 14 condos while Plaza on Brickell was able to close 21. 1800 Club did not have any new closings but I did find another deed that had been recorded twice. This is the reason why the total number of closed condos in this update is one less than the total stated in the December 2008 post for 1800 Club. It needs just 7 more closed condos to hit the all-important 70 percent mark.
As a result of the 60-unit bulk sale, Marina Blue showed the most improvement of the above five condo developments since the last update. I did, however, find re-recorded deeds for Marina Blue that I had previously missed. The developer of Marina Blue has now closed around 82% of the total number of units.
In my opinion, the five condo developments above are all likely candidates for some sort of bulk deal taking place in the future. Met 1 was able to close 7 additional units, Asia 2, 900 Biscayne Bay 13, 500 Brickell 17 and Axis 8. As a result of the new Fannie Mae guidelines, it is not likely that we’ll see significant improvement in any of the condo developments that haven’t thus far reached the 70 percent mark.
Above, you’ll find the four newly added condo developments which began closings within the past 3 months. Timing could not have been worse for these four. They’re going to need to find a plethora of cash buyers who are willing to pay dated prices. Ivy at Riverfront, which began closings back in June 2008, was able to close 14 additional condos since the December 2008 update.
The bright side is that the condo construction cranes of Miami are gone. The cranes that remain are for commercial developments. Marquis and Paramount Bay, which should begin closings within the next 3 months, will be the last of the newly constructed condos to hit the market in Miami. It does appear, however, that Met 3 has begun to lay its foundation. Hopefully, the condo market will reach some sort of equilibrium by the time that development has been completed.
Disclaimer: The above closing rate information was derived from public County records. There can be a 2-3 week delay from the time that a closing occurs and the time that the closing is recorded. The information above is not deemed 100 percent accurate as a result of delays in the recording of deeds and deeds being re-recorded.
Can the Current Financial Crisis Be a Blessing in Disguise for Condo Contract Holders Scheduled to Close?
Last Friday, I had the pleasure of having lunch with Jared Beck and Elizabeth Lee Beck of the business litigation law firm, Beck & Lee. Jared Beck, who pens The Magic City Harvard Lawyer blog, raised an interesting question: Can contract holders of condos in Miami scheduled to close in the coming months use the current financial crisis and inability to acquire financing as a valid argument for nonperformance of their contractual obligation?
I know, I know…preconstruction condo contracts clearly state that performance is not contingent upon financing. However, a recent federal ruling in Hoosier Energy Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. v. John Hancock Life Insurance Co., contains language that may assist condo contract holders who are scheduled to close in the near future.
Here’s some background on the federal case, as provided by Jared Beck’s recent blog post entitled, “Federal Court Endorses Financial Crisis As Basis For Relief From Pre-Existing Contractual Duties; Could Real Estate Contracts Be Affected?”:
The background is somewhat complex but essentially involves the owner of an electrical generating plant in Indiana, Hoosier Energy, which in 2002 entered into a complex lease-back arrangement over some of its assets with an insurance company, John Hancock, aimed at creating a tax shelter for John Hancock. As part of the deal, Hoosier Energy was required to obtain what amounted to a line of credit from Ambac, a financial institution called a “swap provider.”
Until 2008, Hoosier Energy made all of its scheduled payments under the agreement. Then, global financial crisis ensued, and the credit rating of Hoosier Energy’s swap provider sunk like a stone. Hoosier Energy was unable to find another swap provider with a suitable credit rating who could be substituted in a timely manner. John Hancock declared Hoosier Energy to be in default and demanded a large termination payment, shortly after which Hoosier Energy filed suit, requesting a protective injunction.
Mr. Beck went on to say in his blog post that “Hoosier Energy argued that the extraordinary freeze in the global credit markets at least partially excused it from performing under the contract as an instance of ‘commercial impracticability,’ mitigating the default declared by John Hancock”. The court agreed with Hoosier Energy’s argument.
Mr. Beck concluded his post with the following:
How could this newly articulated doctrine be more broadly applied? One possibility rests with the large number of individuals who signed preconstruction real estate contracts several years ago, with the intention of obtaining mortgage financing once the project was finished. Now that many of those projects have been or will soon be competed, those buyers are unable to close because, owing to the global credit crunch, banks will no longer extend mortgage financing for certain new real estate construction at 2004 or 2005 prices.
While many of these purchase contracts were drafted with clauses stating that they were not contingent upon the buyer qualifying for a mortgage, it could be argued, on the basis of the reasoning set forth in Hoosier Energy, that the deals were signed under both parties’ reasonable assumption that financing would actually be available from somewhereonce construction was completed. To quote the Southern District of Indiana in Hoosier Energy, “The crisis was not anticipated by the most senior economists in the country.” If that is true, why should the defense of commercial impracticability, based on the lack of accessible credit, be any less available to the individual real estate buyer seeking to mitigate the effect of a pre-existing contract then it would be to an electrical generating plant operator dealing at arms length with a multibillion dollar insurer? (To some degree, the question overlaps the analysis of whether “bailout” principles should apply equally to financial institutions and individual homeowners, both of whom are victims of their own inability to foresee the mortgage crisis).
The newly revised Fannie Mae guidelines, which went into effect on January 15, state that the government-controlled entity will no longer fund loans for new Florida condos if at least 70 percent of the total units in the development have not be conveyed or under a bona fide contract for purchase to either principal residence or second home purchasers. Contract holders who require financing and are scheduled to close in coming months are basically out of luck. It’ll be interesting to see how the courts handle this argument in 2009.
Icon Brickell Tour – Condos
This past week I was able to tour not only the amenities and common areas at Icon Brickell but also a few condos. Below, you will find the pictures that I took of a few two bedroom condos. Keep in mind that these are model units. Condos at Icon Brickell are delivered by the developer “decorator-ready”. However, as an incentive to buy now, the developer is offering either a 3 percent decorator credit or flooring installed throughout your condo.
The first condo I saw was a 2 bedroom/2 bath plus den. It has 1,503 square feet of interior space and 218 square feet of balcony.
A close-up of the kitchen with natural stone countertops and appliances by Sub-Zero, Wolf and Bosch.
The den area of this condo.
The master bedroom.
The master bathroom with French limestone flooring.
Another shot of the master bathroom with matching limestone vanity top and porcelain sinks.
A third shot of the master bathroom.
The second bedroom.
The view of Brickell Key, Biscayne Bay and Key Biscayne from this 2 bedroom condo.
The second condo I viewed was a 2 bedroom/2 bath with 1,314 square feet of interior space and 133 square feet of balcony.
The kitchen and dining area.
The living room.
The master bedroom.
The master bathroom.
The second bedroom.
The view of the Miami River and Biscayne Bay.
Icon Brickell Tour – Common Areas
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to tour Icon Brickell. I’ve decided to write two separate posts to encompass the thorough tour that I was given. This first post will include pictures and my thoughts about the common areas found at Icon Brickell. The second post, which should be published within the next couple of days, will focus on two model units that I was able to see.
The valet area is grand to say the least. The large columns that greet you as you enter the property resemble the stone heads on Easter Island called Moai. $10M was spent on these monstrous columns.
The windows of each lobby has a yellow film on them to distinguish the room from the rest of the building. It felt a bit like a haunted house to me. Above, you see the concierge desk with an over-sized armoire behind it.
The fireplace located in the lobby of Icon Brickell is surrounded by classical furniture and large, frameless Renaissance portraits.
Another shot of the lobby.
Another look at some of the artwork in the lobby of Icon Brickell.
The hallway leading to the mail room and elevators creates a sharp contrast from the lobby.
The mail room at Icon Brickell.
The Icon Brickell Cafe serves food and beverages to the pool area and makes deliveries to all of the residences.
The Icon Brickell pool deck has a Delano-style to it.
Over-sized chessboard located off the Icon Brickell pool deck.
Outdoor dining table with room for 50 people.
Outdoor gas fireplace and furniture located off the pool deck.
The theater room was locked but I was able to a shot of it through the doors. We were told the room will be filled with beds instead of leather recliners.
The Icon Brickell club room.
Another shot of the Icon Brickell club room. Although I did not get a chance to see them, I was told that there is a separate billiards room and poker room.
Above, you’ll find the thermal spa room which is reminiscent of an ancient Roman bath.
Spinning room at Icon Brickell.
The fitness center at Icon Brickell has free weights, machines, cardio equipment with personal TV screens and two boxing bags.
The locker room at Icon Brickell.
The men’s spa. We were told that the men’s and women’s spas are identical.
The steam room. There is also a separate sauna room.
A treatment/massage room in the Men’s spa at Icon Brickell.
Icon Brickell was different to say the least. It is very over-the-top with an Alice in Wonderland type feel and a hint of South Beach flare to it. The 2 acre pool deck was incredible with its lengthy dining room table, large fireplace, over-sized chessboard and Delano-style Infinity-Edge pools. Most will also appreciate the extensive collection of artwork that fill the various rooms throughout Icon Brickell. My favorite room was the thermal spa room with plunge pools and floor-to-ceiling bookcases on each end. Although it may not appeal to some, it is still a sight to see in person. The Icon Brickell Cafe is definitely an amenity that most will appreciate. There will also be two signature restaurants located at Icon Brickell. I did feel, however, that the fitness center was a bit small to accommodate 1700+ units. Overall, the development may not conform to the tastes of some but I think everyone will agree that it is unlike any condo development that we have seen in Miami.
Icon Brickell has a total of 1,783 units in the three towers that comprise the development. Closings are scheduled to begin next week. Our tour guide notified us that 90 percent of the units had been presold. It will be interesting to see how Icon Brickell fares with their closings in the months ahead.
Miami Condo Construction Update
Super Bowl Sunday afternoon, I decided to walk around Brickell, Downtown Miami and Park West to provide those who reside outside of Miami a construction update for various condo developments. Below, you’ll find various pictures that I took during my walk:
500 Brickelllooks to be about 2-3 months away from being finished.
Icon Brickellappears to have topped off one of its towers and close to topping off the other two.
Met 2 will be comprised of two towers. One will be a 47-story high-rise comprised of Class A office space. The second will be a 42-story signature hotel called Marquis, a JW Marriott Collection Hotel.
Asia is located in Brickell Key. Probably another 2-3 months until this luxury high-rise is ready to begin closings.
Met 1 is the white tower located in the center with the Wachovia building hovering directly behind it. Met 1 is complete but I’ve yet to hear for when the first closing is scheduled. Has anyone heard anything?
Marina Blue, 900 Biscayne Bay, Ten Museum Park and Marquis. Marina Blue is just about done and should begin closings very soon. Gotta love the architecture and glass on Marina Blue! 900 Biscayne Bay will probably begin closings sometime within the next 2-3 months. Although closings at Ten Museum Park began in the Summer of 2007, the amenities and spa are far from being 100 percent complete. Hopefully by July we can file it away as being completely finished. Marquis still has quite a ways to go before being topped off.
