Miami Home Prices Increase for Seventh Straight Month
According to a report released earlier today by the Miami Association of Realtors, home prices in Miami posted solid gains last month. The increase marked seven straight months of appreciation for the Miami real estate market. In June, the median sales price of single-family homes in Miami-Dade County increased five percent to $194,250, year-over-year. The condominium market in Miami fared even better. The median sales price last month increased a staggering 34 percent to $160,000 compared to a year earlier.
The report also revealed that all-cash transactions last month represented 65 percent of total closed sales in Miami-Dade County. Cash sales in June accounted for 77 percent of condominium and 46 percent of single-family home closings. Meanwhile, the national average for all-cash transactions moved slightly higher to 29 percent in June. The astounding difference is attributed to the strong presence of international buyers in Miami.
1101 Brickell Has Been Approved; Construction to Start by Year’s End
An 80-story condo development called 1101 Brickell has been approved by the City of Miami and will be spearheaded by Florida East Coast Realty. The announcement was made by President Tibor Hollo in an interview with Miami Today News. Hollo expects construction to begin by year’s end. 1101 Brickell, which will rise 849 feet, will become the tallest building in Miami, a title now held by the Four Seasons Residences. The development will have 724 residential units and is estimated to cost $500M-$600M.
Florida East Coast Realty is the development team behind several unforgettable residential towers in Miami such as Opera Tower, The Club at Brickell Bay, Bay Parc Plaza, Venetia Condo and The Grand. 1101 Brickell will no doubt be just as memorable.
h/t Curbed Miami
BrickellHouse Groundbreaking Ceremony
For the second time this year, a condo development in Brickell has broken ground. A ceremony was held this morning at the development site of BrickellHouse to celebrate the start of construction. BrickellHouse will be a 46-story, luxury condo development located at 1300 Brickell Bay Drive, across the street from Jade at Brickell Bay. The amenities will include a rooftop pool on the 46th floor, a luxury health spa and fitness center and a fully-automated robotic parking garage. Prior to breaking ground, BrickellHouse already had over 95 percent of the 374 total units pre-sold. I was told by a sales associate that, as of yesterday, only 15 units remain. The available inventory includes a few penthouses as well as other units located on high floors. BrickellHouse is scheduled for completion in 2014.
Remaining Developer Inventory at Met 1 to Go on Sale This Sunday
Get ’em while you can! Starting this Sunday, the developer of Met 1 will sell its last remaining developer units. With 1 bedroom condos starting at $231,000 and 2 bedroom condos starting at $385,000, this is an amazing opportunity! If you look at currently available inventory in the area you will quickly learn that it is virtually impossible to find a 1 bedroom condo in a building of comparable quality to Met 1 for less than $250,000. 300 developer units will be sold in batches. The first units sold will be the best priced. For those who missed the boat on other well priced developer close-outs over the past two years, this could be your last chance to redeem yourself.
Met 1 is located on the southern edge of Downtown Miami at 300 S Biscayne Blvd, within a few blocks of Brickell and a short walk to Mary Brickell Village. Contact us if you would like to learn more about the inventory and pricing for the first batch of units which will go on sale this Sunday. You can reach us via email at [email protected] or by phone at 305-428-3860.
All That Remains of Camillus House in Downtown Miami
While showing property in a nearby Downtown Miami condo development yesterday afternoon, I noticed the pile of wreckage that was once Camillus House. As expected, the site had been demolished early Monday morning. Even though it had only been just a day since the demolition, I decided to drive around the neighborhood yesterday evening to see if I could recognize any differences in the neighborhood. I weaved in and out of the streets around the area and found literally just one homeless person. I truly did not expect to find much of a difference yet but the difference is there and quite obvious even to the most critical of people. This is great news for Downtown Miami!
The Lebron Effect on Downtown Miami Real Estate Prices
It has been a long and winding road but the Miami Heat accomplished Thursday night what they had set out to do in July 2010 – to win an NBA championship. The Miami Heat defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 4-1 in the NBA Finals to become the 2012 NBA champions. In all honestly, the Miami Heat obliterated the OKC Thunder and made a mockery of them – but we won’t go there. Few would refute that LeBron James, the Most Valuable Player of the 2011-2012 season, was the most contributing factor which allowed the Miami Heat to raise the NBA trophy Thursday night for only the second time in franchise history. LeBron James’ decision in July 2010 to take his talents to South Beach single-handedly changed the landscape of the league and set forth in motion an inevitability that no one outside of Miami wanted to see.
James’ arrival in the summer of 2010 was celebrated not only by die-hard Heat fans but also anyone with any type of business or property interest in the city. His announcement was seen as a godsend to the hotel and tourism, restaurant and real estate industries throughout Miami. The area most positively impacted by LeBron James’ decision to join the Heat was most certainly Downtown Miami, the neighborhood immediately surrounding the Miami Heat arena. Prior to James’ arrival, property values in Downtown Miami had endured several years of double digit price declines. Furthermore, retail spaces and hundreds of condominiums within walking distance of the arena sat completely empty. However, that was all about to change.
Within days of James’ announcement, there were reports of buyers snatching up condos in the area in a flurry of excitement. As a result, developer inventory began to dwindle and Miami real estate prices started to recover over the subsequent months. Since LeBron James’ decision in 2010, real estate values in Downtown Miami have increased over 20 percent. Additionally, across the street from the arena, several new businesses – such as a pizza restaurant, wine bar, Chinese restaurant and sports bar – have opened their doors. One could argue that James’ arrival played an instrumental role in the real estate recovery seen in Downtown Miami in recent years.
MyBrickell and Millecento Pre-construction Sales Update
Pre-construction sales at MyBrickell and 1100 Millecento have been remarkably strong this year. MyBrickell, which broke ground about a month and a half ago, has only 11 of 192 units remaining. Completion is slated for the end of 2013. Millecento has been even more impressive. Millecento should be completely sold out long before groundbreaking. Only 13 of 382 units remain and groundbreaking is not expected to take place until October. Delivery is scheduled for November 2014.
Contact us if you have an interest in reserving one of the last available units at MyBrickell or Millecento.
Top 5 Questions To Ask When Buying a Condominium
Buying a condominium is quite different than buying a house. A different process is involved so make sure that you ask the right questions to avoid unexpected issues or expenses after closing. Below you will find what I feel are the top five questions to ask when buying a condominium.
1. Does the condominium development have any current or planned special assessments?
A special assessment is a one-time charge levied by the condominium association upon unit owners to pay for unanticipated expenses such as a major replacement, repair or improvement. Special assessments are rare in newer buildings but typical in buildings that are 15 years old or older where a roof might need to be replaced, a pool might need to be resurfaced, a lobby completely redesigned, etc. Although sellers are obligated to disclose any special assessments to buyers when entering into a contract, I recommend speaking with the property manager prior to making an offer so that you can take the information into account when coming up with a price to offer. A special assessment is not a deal killer but I would have the seller pay for all, or at least the vast majority of the special assessment, at closing. When shopping for a condo in a building that is 10 years old or older, I would also find out from the property manager if the association has a reserve account. A reserve account, which acts as a savings account, holds funds set aside by the condominium association to pay for major replacements, repairs or improvements on the building. Reserves funds are intended to prevent or offset the need for special assessments. For those looking to buy a condo in a much older building, keep in mind that all condominium buildings in Miami-Dade County must be inspected and recertified every 40 years. This will almost certainly result in a special assessment of some sort being levied if the condominium association has not kept on top of its repairs over the years.
2. How much are the condominium association fees?
Condominium association fees, also known as maintenance fees, are used to pay to operate and manage the building. Expenses that are often covered by these fees include: the cost to insure the exterior of the building, pay staff salaries, maintain and operate the amenities and pay not only the utilities which are needed to operate the building but also any utilities that are provided to individual units such as water, sewer and trash removal. A portion of the condominium association fee may also be set aside to fund a reserve account. Condominium association fees are normally paid on a monthly basis but I have seen cases where the condo association elects to have its members pay them on a quarterly basis instead. In Miami, the fee charged to each unit owner is determined by calculating the proportional amount of the budgetary expenses attributed to each unit based upon square footage . I have heard of buildings in other cities base the ownership percentage on other standards such as view or floor location of the unit but I have not come across any condominium buildings in Miami which use anything other than square footage as their basis. The condominium association fees can change from time to time so I would check with the property manager to ensure that the figure you see in the MLS is up-to-date. I would also find out if there are any plans to increase or decrease these fees anytime soon.
3. Should I have an inspection done on the condominium?
9 out of 10 times a condominium inspection will not reveal any major concerns. Nevertheless, I typically recommend that a buyer have an inspection done anyway. The cost of a property inspection is very small in the grand scheme of things. It is better to be safe than sorry. You will want to ensure that the air conditioning unit and appliances are operating properly. Keep in mind that a standard inspection does not include an inspection for mold. I recommend making a visual inspection of the ceilings and air conditioning closet for water stains. A water stain does not necessarily mean that mold is present but I would recommend that the buyer have a mold inspection done if that is the case. It will cost extra but it could potentially save you thousands of dollars and a ton of headaches.
4. Will I be able to obtain financing to purchase a condominium?
If you are looking to obtain financing to purchase a condo then this should be the first question you ask. Aside from your creditworthiness as a buyer, the answer will depend on the building in which you seek to purchase a condo. The development will need to meet certain guidelines in order to be considered Fannie Mae approved which would then make the building eligible for conventional financing. Although we do work with banks that will finance a condo that is not eligible for conventional financing, the interest rate will normally be slightly higher than that of a conventional loan. In either scenario, a bank will typically require at least a minimum 20 percent down payment.
5. Does the condominium association have any restrictions?
The condominium association can, and often does, implement restrictions on owners. The two most common are lease and pet restrictions. A condominium association will typically limit the number of times per year that an owner is able to lease their unit. The association will normally also set a minimum duration for each lease. Such policies prevent the elevators from constantly being congested with people moving in and out of the building. Investors, on the other hand, generally welcome less restrictive rental policies in order to maximize their potential revenue. Most condo associations in Miami establish a minimum rental period of 3 or 6 months.
Another major restriction that a condominium association can impose is one on pet owners. The majority of new condo developments have very lax pet policies at the outset. However, once the building is handed over the to the condo association more stringent policies are typically put into place. It is common at this stage for the condo board to vote to allow owners to have pets but not renters. Although debatable, the rationale behind this is that owners are more respectful of the property than renters. Investors, however, should keep in mind that rental candidates will be limited if such policies are implemented in a building where they own a condo. You would be surprised by how many people own a pet these days. The condominium association can also restrict the items kept on your balcony, the type of vehicle(s) you can park in the garage, the days of the week and hours for which you can move in and out of the building, the hours you can access the amenities and so on.
Miami Condo Investments Turns 5 Today
By happenstance, it suddenly occurred to me yesterday that Miami Condo Investments would be turning five years old today. Five years! Quite remarkable when I stopped to think about it. I had owned the domain since 2005 but it wasn’t until May 12, 2007 that I decided to roll up my sleeves and write my first blog post – I just had to see what this blogging thing was all about. I had read all about the potential benefits of blogging and what it could mean for my real estate business but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine just how profoundly it would impact my career. Had it not been for my commitment to blogging, there is no doubt in my mind that I would have fallen to the wayside like many of my fellow Realtors® at the height of the market. Instead, blogging allowed me to advance in my career and see continued success with each passing year. Blogging also provided me with a forum to reach a global audience – a forum which, over the past five years, has had roughly 2M visitors from 206 countries who have viewed over 10.3M pages! I want to thank each and every one of you, especially those who have contributed to the forum with comments and feedback. It has been greatly appreciated.
Without a doubt, Miami Condo Investments will be around for another five. I look forward to the coming years and will continue to provide you with relevant information about the Miami real estate market.
