Miami’s real estate market has long been a magnet for foreign investors. But developers now report that out-of-town buyers, both foreign and domestic, are seeking homes they can live it, rather than just park money into. The influx of these buyers is having a noticeable impact on how apartments, condos, and townhouses are designed, especially at the luxury end of the market.
The Miami Herald reports on several new multifamily projects whose homes include maid’s rooms, larger terraces, boutique-size closets, and guest suites.
The article points specifically to Paramount Miami Worldcenter, a $1.7 billion mixed-use complex that will blanket 27 acres of Overtown and downtown Miami, as an example of this trend. About 80 of its 513 apartments will include 250- to 280-sf studios with their own bathrooms and bedrooms, which could house a maid, a nanny, or a guest.
Another such project is the 12-apartment Louver House in South Beach, whose 2,400-sf units will include 700-sf terraces that allow residents to enjoy the outdoors more.
In an interview with The Real Deal, Camilo Miguel, CEO of Mast Capital, Louver House’s developer, says that five of the 12 apartments have been sold, at prices averaging about $1,300 per square foot. “We have a mixed group of buyers including a couple of New Yorkers looking to make it a permanent residence. There’s an owner from South America who bought here, an individual from the Apogee. They’re not investors, really. They’re end-users.”
The number of luxury homebuyers in Miami-Dade with New York addresses was up 20% in the first six months of 2015, according to the Herald. Developers are appealing to those buyers and renters who want that semi-urban experience by emphasizing their buildings’ proximity to mass transit. At least one developer, Property Market Groups, is also building smaller, more urban-like units: its 464-unit luxury rental at 300 Biscayne Blvd. called Vice will include studios at 530 sf for about $1,650 per month and one-bedrooms at 600 sf for about $1,800 per month, as well as larger units.
Miami’s attractiveness to out-of-towners continues to be the relative inexpensiveness of its housing, compared to other global cities. Quoting statistics from EWM Realty International, the Herald reports that prices in Miami Beach average $760 per sf, versus $2,204 in New York, $2,948 in London, and $2,331 in Hong Kong. (While Chinese investors account for a minuscule number of residential real estate buyers in Miami, they are seen as a growth market for whom housing units need to be tailored.)
Latin Americans accounted for 68% of all foreign buyers in Miami and Broward counties last year, according to the Miami Association of Realtors. However, number of foreign buyers has been slowing as currency crises rattle economies in Latin America and Europe. Cash sales, which often indicate international buyers, were down 12% in Miami-Dade in June 2015 compared with June 2014.
Related Stories
Multifamily Housing | Oct 12, 2021
New multifamily community completes in Austin
Britt Design Group and Davies Collaborative designed the project.
Multifamily Housing | Oct 6, 2021
New assisted living and memory care facility begins construction in Austin
OZ Architecture designed the project.
Multifamily Housing | Oct 4, 2021
Spire brings 343 condos to downtown Seattle
The project is the closest high-rise building to the Space Needle.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 29, 2021
Five-story apartment community in Duarte, Calif. breaks ground
The project is located 22 miles from downtown L.A.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 22, 2021
Designing for the ‘missing middle’ in multifamily housing
Multifamily housing expert Patrick Winters, AIA, discusses a neglected segment of the market: the "missing middle."
Multifamily Housing | Sep 22, 2021
11 notable multifamily projects to debut in 2021
A residence for older LGBTQ+ persons, a P3 student housing building, and a converted masonic lodge highlight the multifamily developments to debut this year.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 1, 2021
Top 10 outdoor amenities at multifamily housing developments for 2021
Fire pits, lounge areas, and covered parking are the most common outdoor amenities at multifamily housing developments, according to new research from Multifamily Design+Construction.
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2021
2021 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
The 2021 Giants 400 Report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Multifamily Housing | Aug 30, 2021
366-unit multifamily community breaks ground San Jose
KTGY designed the project.
Multifamily Housing | Aug 27, 2021
ODA completes West Half, its first D.C. project
The project is located in Washington, D.C.’s Navy Yard.