Miami CocoWalk Under New Ownership

Miami CocoWalk Is Now Under New Ownership

 

Coconut Grove real estate is experiencing a significant makeover at various fronts. New residential condos, hundreds of house flipping projects, new retail space and now CocoWalk the very heart of Coconut Grove is under new ownership. The resurgence of Coconut Grove will make it once again a destination that’s home to quality retail, dinning and entertainment fitting the culture of its residents.

CocoWalk changed hands on Monday in a deal valued at $87.5 million, amid plans to redevelop the center with a new tenant mix. Federal Realty Investment Trust, based in Rockville, Maryland, purchased an 80 percent interest in the 198,000-square-foot outdoor shopping center in Coconut Grove, along with local partners Grass River Property and The Comras Company, the firms announced.

The new owners emphasized their plans to revamp CocoWalk in the heart of Miami’s Coconut Grove. “We see significant opportunity to transform and remerchandise a property at the center of Miami’s most authentic district,” said Jim Taylor, executive vice president, CFO and treasurer of Federal Realty Investment Trust, in a statement.

Built in 1990, the three-acre property at 3015 Grand Avenue in Miami was owned by New Orleans-based REIT PMAT Companies, according to Miami-Dade property records. Current tenants include Gap, Cheesecake Factory, Cinepolis Theaters, Bice Bistro and Starbucks. Le Macaron and YouFit Health Club are coming soon, according to CocoWalk’s website. “Local, regional and national retailers and restaurateurs are increasingly seeking walkable environments where they can connect year-round and throughout the day with their customers,” Comras Company President and CEO Michael Comras said in a statement. “Their enthusiasm for CocoWalk’s location will drive a powerful merchandising mix that captures the Grove’s vibe.”

The Grove is in the midst of a comeback, amid the construction of new luxury condo developments like Park Grove and Grove at Grand Bay. In April, a group of Latin American investors acquired a site in the west Grove ten times its last sale price. In March, new restaurants were announced amid a flurry of multimillion dollar purchases and renovations, including the Eagle Building, which is attracting high-profile tenants, and Pointe Group’s $14 million purchase of three commercial parcels totaling 60,000 square feet. * The Real Deal

Call me now to schedule a complete presentation of any project in Miami. For Reservation please contact me at 954.254.6085 or email me at JuanSolerRealtor@gmail.com Time is always of the essence but much more in Pre-construction. Don't miss this window of Opportunity!

To Buy, Sell or Rent Properties in Miami go to http://www.JuanSolerRealtor.com

   

S&P/Case Shiller Confirms the Sustained Miami Home Prices Growth

S&P/Case Shiller Authenticates Miami Home Prices Growth

Chris Leavitt, broker at Douglas Eliman, in an interview for Bloomberg stated that Miami Luxury Real Estate is sold at 50% Discount to NYC. However, the quality of the real estate properties is quite similar especially in the context of the arrival of many demanding international buyers.

No wonder that South Florida once again ranked among the highest metropolitan areas for rising home prices, according to the S&P/Case Shiller Home Price Indices released Tuesday.

In February, the Miami area’s ranking was up 9.2 percent, year-over-year, and up 0.6 percent from January. The Miami metropolitan area came in third for the highest increase, after Denver and San Francisco, which reported the largest year-over-year gains, up 10 percent and 9.8 percent, respectively. Nationwide, an S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city composite showed a 5 percent gain, year-over-year.

“Home prices continue to rise and outpace both inflation and wage gains,” said David M. Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a statement. “The S&P/Case-Shiller National Index has seen 34 consecutive months with positive year-over-year gains; all 20 cities have shown year-over-year gains every month since the end of 2012.”  * The Real Deal

Call me now to schedule a complete presentation of any project in Miami. For Reservation please contact me at 954.254.6085 or email me at JuanSolerRealtor@gmail.com Time is always of the essence but much more in Pre-construction. Don't miss this window of Opportunity!

To Buy, Sell or Rent Properties in Miami go to http://www.JuanSolerRealtor.com

  

Brazil & Colombia Topped Search for South Florida Real Estate

Brazil & Colombia Top Search for South Florida Real Estate

 

The Miami Association of Realtors, the nation’s largest local Realtor association, continues to see sizable increases in visitors to its website, a sign more consumers are searching for properties and information about the South Florida real estate market. The Miami real estate market continues to attract significant attention from both foreign and domestic consumers.

Miami’s website, Miamire.com, registered 188,287 visits in February 2015--- a 42.6-percent increase from the amount of web visitors in February 2014. Miamire.com also had 62,527 unique visitors in the month of February, a jump of 33 percent compared to the same month a year ago.

Brazil topped the list of countries that conducted searches on the MIAMI site in February 2015. Brazilians have long been interested in Miami real estate, and regularly rank among South Florida’s top foreign buyers. In 2014, Brazilians registered 11 percent of all South Florida international real estate deals. Brazil had the third-most Miami and Broward Counties transactions among all foreign countries, trailing only Venezuela (16 percent) and Argentina (12 percent).

Top-10 Countries visiting Miamire.com in February:

2015	2014
1. Brazil	1. Brazil
2. Colombia	2. Colombia
3. Venezuela	3. Canada
4. Canada	4. India
5. India	5. Argentina
6. Argentina	6. Venezuela
7. UK	7. Bolivia
8. Russia	8. France
9. Philippines	9. UK
10. Italy	10. Russia

Top U.S. Markets for Miami

Miami is a top choice for consumers in many U.S. markets. Not including Florida, the top-10 U.S. states for consumers searching Miamire.com in February were:

2015: 1) California, 2) Georgia, 3)Texas, 4) NewYork, 5) Illinois, 6) Michigan, 7) Pennsylvania, 8) Virginia, 9) Ohio, 10) North Carolina

2014: 1) California, 2) Georgia, 3)Texas, 4) NewYork, 5) Illinois, 6) Michigan, 7) Pennsylvania, 8) Virginia, 9) New Jersey, 10) North Carolina

Call me now to schedule a complete presentation of any project in Miami. For Reservation please contact me at 954.254.6085 or email me at JuanSolerRealtor@gmail.com Time is always of the essence but much more in Pre-construction. Don't miss this window of Opportunity!

To Buy, Sell or Rent Properties in Miami go to http://www.JuanSolerRealtor.com

  

Swire Properties & PMG Structuring More Appealing Deals for New Condo Buyers

Developers Structuring More Appealing Deals for New Condo Buyers

 

In a very competitive market, a pair of prominent developers have relaxed their requirements for 50 percent deposits from prospective buyers. Swire Properties announced it was lowering down payments for a condo at one of its Brickell City Centre residential towers, Rise, to 35 percent, while Property Markets Group is offering some foreign buyers deals that allow them to pay 50 percent deposits in installments prior to closing for units at Echo Brickell, Echo Aventura, Muse in Sunny Isles Beach, and Sage Beach in Hollywood.

The moves come four months after the group developing the Crimson condominium in Edgewater began offering some units to local buyers with only 15 to 35 percent down through a Fannie Mae lending program. The lowering of deposits indicates competition is intensifying in the greater Miami condo market.

More than 70 new condo towers with nearly 20,000 units have been announced since the cycle began in 2011, Zalewski said. At the same time, condo sales have slowed down in recent months. The Miami Association of Realtors reports condo sales decreased 15 percent in January and only rose 1.4 percent in February compared to the same months last year.

“The decision by a market maker such as Swire Properties to reduce deposits from the current norm of 50 percent can only prompt other developers to revise their presale terms in hopes of remaining competitive,” he said. 

However, a PMG principal and brokers pitching buyers the company’s projects, as well as Swire’s Rise condominium, insist loosening the 50 percent deposit requirement does not mean the South Florida market has cooled.

“Swire only changed the deposit structures on the remaining unsold units at Rise, which is only 15 percent,” Daniel de la Vega, president of ONE Sotheby’s International Realty, told TRD. ONE Sotheby’s is the exclusive brokerage for Rise.

“It is not an indication of where the market is heading,” de la Vega added. “All the other projects I am working on still require 50 percent deposits. I don’t see it changing in the near future.”

He also noted Swire, unlike other developers, has never relied on buyer deposits for construction of its residential projects. Swire, a publicly traded firm, is using mostly equity, intra-company lending, corporate debt and complex financing to build Brickell City Centre, according to company statements filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Craig Studnicky, principal of International Sales Group, which is marketing PMG projects, said the developer is allowing some buyers from Argentina and Venezuela to only put down 40 percent with the remaining ten percent paid in installments prior to closing.

“Global buyers, especially ones from Argentina and Venezuela, are having a difficult time moving money out of their countries,” Studnicky said. “It is a lot harder for Argentinians and Venezuelans to move money out than it was a year ago.”

PMG is able to offer flexible down payments to select buyers because the developer’s projects have built enough equity and are fully financed for construction.

“You will be hearing on the street that more developers are lowering deposits to 30 to 35 percent,” Studnicky said. “I promise you those projects are fully funded. The risk is pretty much zero for the developer.”

Ryan Shear, a PMG principal in charge of the firm’s South Florida projects, said that PMG determines which buyers get extended down payment plans on a case-by-case basis. “If someone comes in and wants to make the down payment over a one-year period, we will work out a structure,” Shear explained. “Whether it’s a 30-10-10 split or a 10-10-10-10-10 split, it all adds up to 50 percent.” * Notes taken from The Real Deal.

Call me now to schedule a complete presentation of any project in Miami. For Reservation please contact me at 954.254.6085 or email me at JuanSolerRealtor@gmail.comTime is always of the essence but much more in Pre-construction. Don't miss this window of Opportunity!

To Buy, Sell or Rent Properties in Miami go to http://www.JuanSolerRealtor.com