Billionaire Richard Branson to launch Virgin Cruises from Miami
After a cloud of red smoke signaled his arrival, Virgin Group founder and eccentric billionaire Richard Branson flew across Biscayne Bay in the belly of a helicopter, waving at reporters as he landed in front of the Pérez Art Museum Miami on Tuesday morning. The big entrance warranted the big news: Virgin Cruises, the first cruise line…
Hotel occupancy dips slightly in Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties in May, STR reports
South Florida’s hotel occupancy rates were either down or unchanged in May compared to the same time last year, according to recently released data from STR, Inc. Miami-Dade County’s hotel occupancy rate in May was 76.5 percent, down 2.5 percent compared to May 2014. The county’s average daily rate was $177.08, up 4.6 percent…
Video: Historic Miami church to sell land, move to another location
An historic church on prime Miami property has decided it’s time to cash in on its land value. Unity on the Bay, which is surrounded by new condominiums, will be entertaining offers for the first time in its half-century of existence.
Developer breaks ground on 86-unit condo in Miami’s Edgewater
Stripey Development broke ground on its 10-story 26 Edgewater condominium. The 86-unit project at 321 N.E. 26th Street has one- and two-bedroom condos ranging from 598 to 1,021 square feet. The developer said 80 percent of the units were pre-sold after only 30 days of marketing by Fortune International Realty. They were…
Miami Beach’s Granite apartments trade for $11M
The Granite at Miami Beach apartment building sold for $11.375 million to a group funded by international investors. RJF – 20th & Park LLC, an affiliate of Nashua, N.H. based-R.J. Finlay Management Co., sold the 56-unit building at 337 20th Street (area demographics) to Riviera Plaza Apartments, which is managed by Tulsa…
Israeli developer Mana adds to downtown Miami holdings with $4.5M deal
Israeli developer Moishe Mana added another piece to his downtown Miami holdings (area listings) with a $4.5 million deal on Flagler Street. The 6,000-square-foot property was sold by 110 E. Flagler Street Inc. to Mana’s 110 East Flagler Realty LLC. It has a 6,194-square-foot retail building developed in 1967. The deal equates to $750…
Sheraton Miami Airport Hotel sold for $42M to New York firm
An affiliate of Dune Real Estate Partners acquired the Sheraton Miami Airport Hotel & Executive Meeting Center for $42.32 million. THI IV Miami, part of Annapolis, Md.-based Thayer Lodging Group, sold the hotel at 3900 N.W. 21st Street to 3900 NW LLC, part of New York-based private real estate investment firm DREP. Deutsche Bank…
Love Boat: In full over-the-top Virgin style…
In full over-the-top Virgin style Sir Richard Branson, a man who is so obviously not a virgin, announced the launch of Virgin Cruises (again, technically. The first announcement was in December) by helicoptering into Museum Park with probably-also-not-virgin arm candy for a press conference. It…
Amenity Arms Race: An Aromatherapy Trail is Exactly What Your Condo Needs
Your condo loses. The game of amenity one-upmanship has been one-upped yet again. Every rinky-dink building has an art collection, pet spa, and bowling alley these days, but soon a building coming to North Miami Beach will have… of all things… an aromatherapy trail, because who doesn’t like to…
Related Group seeks $12M in funding for affordable housing project in Miami
The Miami-Dade County Commission will consider approving $12 million in financing for the Related Group to build an affordable housing project. The proposal by Martin Fine Villas, an affiliate of the Miami-based developer, will go before the commission on June 30. The project would help address the major need for affordable housing…
Losing Our Religion: As the Miami Herald points…
As the Miami Herald points out “sometimes even a house God has to know when to cash out,” which is pretty much what Unity on Bay is doing with their fab-u-lous Edgewater property with generous and permanent bay views (the views to the southeast are permanent, and more views to the east are pretty…
Miami Is The Second Most Popular Destination For International Visitors
Miami is among the fastest growing destinations in the U.S. for overseas visitors, as tourists continue to flock to the city. In 2014, international visits to Miami increased 21%, setting a new record. Overall, Miami had the second most visitors from overseas in the U.S., behind only New York City.
$1,885,000 Investment Sale Negotiated In Medley
Lucia Custer and Gabriel Garcia-Menocal, SIOR, negotiated the sale of the 16,650-foot industrial building on behalf of the buyer, DiMaggio Tires.
Investors nab entire block of Washington Ave in SoBe for $36M
Miami Beach-based investment firm Turnbridge Equities has purchased an entire block on Washington Avenue in South Beach for $36 million, with plans to redevelop the property, The Real Deal has learned. The firm…
Surfside hotel owner scores $50M refinancing
An international real estate investor just signed a $50 million refinancing deal for two of his Surfside hotels. Jacques-Gaston Murray, a European that made his fortune with fire extinguishers and air conditioning, took out the loan on two of…
Midtown Doral moves forward
Doral, a city on Miami-Dade County’s western edge that’s known for its suburbs and industrial market, is getting a modern makeover. Local developers and industry heavyweights…
Miami home prices climb in May: report
Median prices for single-family homes and condominiums jumped by double digits year-over-year in May, according to a Miami Association of Realtors report released on Tuesday. Single-family home…
American retail as we know it is dying — and now these industries are taking over
From the New York website: For a long time, malls were dominated by brands like Sears, Gap, and Abercrombie & Fitch. But the tide is turning in retail. Big apparel brands are grappling with shoppers who increasingly want deeply…
David Edelstein sells Wynwood properties for $13M
David Edelstein’s SBT Wynwood sold two properties on North Miami Avenue in Wynwood for $13 million this week.
Edelstein, who heads New York-based TriStar Capital, sold 2601 and 2637 North Miami Avenue to a partnership between Vitality Holding a…
West Kendall shopping center lands $20M loan
Crossings Shopping Village, a shopping center in Miami’s West Kendall neighborhood, recently obtained $20 million in financing, according to a press release. The 109,000-square-foot retail site is anchored by Publix Super Market, CVS/Pharmacy and Youfit Fitness Center…
Miami Beach apartments sold for $11M
A 56-unit apartment building in the Museum District of Miami Beach sold for $11.4 million, according to a deed recorded in Miami-Dade County records on Tuesday. RJF Finlay, a real estate development, construction and management company, sold the…
Altman Companies Bets Big on This Woman
Here’s some of her wisdom: “As long-term owners, we need to make sure that we buy at prices that can be justified so that the market won’t fall out from under us like it did in the last cycle.”…
Publix-CVS Retail Finds Easy Money
How hot are Publix-anchored shopping centers in Miami? Hot enough to get strong terms on financing….
Courier Express/Orlando Leases 25,520 SF In Broward
Michael Scarpino, CCIM, a Senior Associate with NAI Rauch Weaver Norfleet Kurtz & Co., represented the landlord in the deal.
Firm Tapped To Market Apartment Community In Plantation’s Midtown Business District
The gated community at 8000 Cleary Boulevard includes 376 townhome-style units situated in 29 two-and three-story buildings spanning approximately 38 acres.
Credit unions proposed changes to business lending could encroach on banks’ business
The line between credit unions and traditional banks has long been blurry, but it could soon get even blurrier. The National Credit Union Administration has proposed changes to its member business lending regulations that would make commercial lending easier for credit unions, further chipping away at traditional banks’ business.