Despite pandemic, PortMiami sets all-time cargo record

PortMiami just posted the biggest import-export numbers in its 80-plus-year history, new Miami-Dade County figures show, exceeding its prior record by 1.5% despite the difficulties that come with operating under coronavirus conditions. The port processed 107,088 twenty-foot equivalent units of cargo in October compared to 105,573 in 2019, an accomplishment staff…

Nazarian trades hotel assets including SLS, Delano to focus on virtual kitchens

As a rising star of the Los Angeles club scene in the early aughts, Sam Nazarian helped create the hotel-as-party-spot with properties like his SLS in Beverly Hills and Miami. He teamed up with A-list designers like Philippe Starck and took the mantle of boutique-hotel impresario from Ian Schrager when he bought the Studio 54 co-founder’s Morgan Hotels group in 2016.

Eldridge Acquires the Hudson Hotel and Delano South Beach from sbe

Eldridge, a holding company with a unique network of businesses across finance, technology, real estate, and entertainment, has today completed the acquisition of the Hudson Hotel and Delano South Beach, located in New York City and Miami, respectively. Cain International, Eldridge’s real estate investment firm, has been appointed to lead a strategic repositioning…

Miller Construction Breaks Ground on 312,592 SF Industrial Park in Hialeah Gardens

Miller Construction has broken ground on Midpoint Miami Logistics Park, a 312,592-square-foot industrial property in Hialeah Gardens. The 18-acre site will include the 147,974-square-foot Building 1 and the 164,618-square-foot Building 2. Miller expects to immediately break ground on Building 1 and then plans to start Building 2 four weeks later. The Fort Lauderdale…

Hotel height increases could be coming to Miami Beach’s Collins Avenue near Ocean Drive

Miami Beach officials are evaluating zoning changes in the Art Deco Historic District as part of a long-range plan to transform Ocean Drive once again. The proposal includes possibly granting Collins Avenue hotel developers significant height increases and restricting the number of standalone drinking establishments on Ocean Drive. The city’s three…

Expert Insights: How CRE Has Changed, and How It’s Stayed the Same

In our digital world, things rarely stay the same for any extended amount of time. In industries such as commercial real estate (CRE), there is a constant tug-of-war between tradition and innovation. Events such as the rapid adoption of tech and big data have already transformed the real estate industry, while other up-and-coming trends like virtual tours are starting…

While Institutional Investors Are Scared Of Retail And Hospitality, Pros Should Unleash Their ‘Special Sauce’

Moderating a Bisnow webinar about South Florida and capital deployment Tuesday, Simon Ziff, president of Ackman-Ziff Real Estate Group, pondered the long-term impact of the coronavirus. “You think about these downturns, everyone says they’re once in a lifetime or four times in a lifetime,” Ziff said. “This is where you’re going to get rich.” Ziff (who said he is in the…

Commuter Miami Beach ferry service set to cross the bay

After nearly two years of negotiations as well as setbacks related to Covid-19, Poseidon Ferry is to begin cross-bay commuter services between downtown Miami and Miami Beach on Nov. 29. “The waterborne transportation project to utilize Biscayne Bay for passenger transportation has been years in the making,” said Poseidon CEO Johnathan Silvia…

Public-private deal’s 31-story downtown Miami residences near

Major progress is being made on construction of a residential tower rising in the heart of downtown Miami and the project continues to be ahead of schedule. Grand Station, a mixed-use residential tower at the southwest corner of Northwest Third Street and North Miami Avenue, is expected to be completed during the second quarter of 2021, according to Alejandra…

Bayside observation wheel gives thousands bird’s-eye views

For a little over two weeks, Bayside Marketplace’s observation wheel has been open to the public and offering views of the downtown Miami skyline, with crowds rising into the thousands on weekends. The 176-foot wheel is operating at half capacity of its 42 enclosed and climate-controlled gondolas due to sanitation and safety procedures, said Charlene Leavitt of Skyviews…

Lennar spends $29M on Homestead mobile home park, plans new community

Lennar Homes purchased a former mobile home park in Homestead for $29 million, with plans to build a new housing community. Property records show Lennar Homes LLC bought two parcels totaling more than 40 acres at 28600 Southwest 132nd Avenue. The seller is Mac Thirteen LLC, a Florida company linked to the Treo Group. Treo bought the land in November…

Goldman Properties buys Wynwood property for discounted $5M

Goldman Properties bought a retail building and adjacent vacant lot in Miami’s Wynwood for $5.2 million. Goldman bought the 12,000-square-foot building, built in 1955, at 2501 Northwest 5th Avenue and the lot at 413 Northwest 25th Street from RedSky Capital, according to records. Goldman Properties is led by CEO Jessica Goldman Srebnick, the daughter…

CocoWalk’s revival continues with addition of retail brands

The ownership group behind the reimagined CocoWalk remains committed to breathing new life into Miami’s Coconut Grove neighborhood. The alfresco lifestyle center, slated to begin its phased reopening later this fall, has added three new retail brands to its tenant roster including Free People Movement, a women’s activewear brand from Philadelphia; Europann, a…

Tech giants occupy nearly 600M-sf of US real estate

The sluggish commercial real estate market is getting a boost from tech giants Amazon and Facebook, which have emerged as some of the largest acquirers of real estate in recent years. Five of the largest tech companies — Amazon, Facebook, Apple, Microsoft and Google’s parent company, Alphabet — now collectively occupy about 589 million square feet of…

Regal Cinemas scores financial rescue package

The owner of Regal Cinemas scored a lifeline to help the financially challenged movie theater chain stay afloat. Cineworld Group has secured a $450 million loan from lenders as coronavirus cases spike and theaters across the country remain closed. Other lenders provided increased flexibility on the company’s revolving loan and senior debt, adding…

What doom-and-gloom forecasts miss about the office market

The short-term dive in office demand is not likely to continue far into the 2020s, according to a recent report form MetLife Investment Management. In fact, the cities where demand for office space is falling most — including San Francisco, Washington and San Jose — may attract the most demand over the next decade, presenting a “unique buying opportunity” for…

PortMiami Cargo Keeps Head Above Water In Downturn

Sea cargo to and from Miami-Dade has dipped only slightly despite the coronavirus, according to PortMiami Director Juan Kuryla, who said he expects improvement through year’s end. “Year over year and year-end fiscal 2020 … we were only 4.8% down,” Kuryla said. “That is a significant achievement considering the economic condition worldwide and…

Developers pay $15M for Miami River mobile home park

ROVR Development and its partner paid $15 million for a mobile home park along the Miami River. A company affiliated with Raul and Michael Nunez sold the property at 2750 Northwest South River Drive. Raul Nunez is a manager of A+ Mini Storage, according to his LinkedIn account. A+ has 10 locations throughout South Florida. Michael Nunez, president of A+…

Pharrell’s Billionaire Boys Club to open store in Wynwood

Billionaire Boys Club plans to open a store in Miami’s trendy Wynwood neighborhood. The Pharrell Williams-owned clothing brand inked a lease for 5,700 square feet at 2545 Northwest Third Avenue in a building that formerly housed a wholesale shoe company, according to a release. The site is across from Zak the Baker…

Affiliated Development launches $125M workforce housing fund

A Fort Lauderdale-based real estate development and investment firm wants to raise $125 million to invest in mixed-income workforce housing in South and Central Florida. Affiliated Development launched the impact housing fund to help communities while delivering risk-adjusted returns for its investors, according to a press release. The fund will provide…

Retailers now owe $52 billion in back rent

Brick-and-mortar stores were struggling before the pandemic. But now, the retail sector owes $52 billion in back rent. An analysis of data from CoStar found that retailers nationwide had missed two to four months’ rent, according to Bloomberg. Questions remain about how the pandemic and changing consumer preferences will affect the sector in the long run.

Doral’s Economy Begins To Recover

“We have a solid, spacious, multi-varied industrial sector and area and we are very close to Miami International Airport.” With these words, the Director for Economic Development of the City of Doral, Manuel Pila, explained why our municipality has experienced a rapid recovery after the first months of COVID 19. Pila explained that similar to what has been…

Brookfield Properties Picks Up Doral Warehouse For $8.5 Million

NAI Miami represented the $8,462,500 sale of a 62,000-square-foot industrial building located at 2105 NW 102nd Avenue in Doral by World Famous Partnership, Ltd. to Brookfield Properties. The 1999-built building features 24′ clear height, 6 exterior dock doors and 1 drive-in bay. “Our team is very grateful to be able to put this transaction together for…

Miami Commercial Real Estate Sales to List Price Ratio Firms Back Up ~ October 2020 MLS

The sales to list price ratio as reported by the Miami MLS for improved commercial real estate within Miami-Dade County from $1 million to $10 million firmed back up in October to just over 90% after a dip in September. This put the ratio within but in the lower end of a 5% band it has been in for the past year or so. It remains reasonable to assume there is a touch…

Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach developer Lionheart Capital partner Ricardo Dunin leaves to start new venture

Lionheart Capital principals Ricardo Dunin and Ophir Sternberg have parted ways. Dunin left the Miami-based real estate development and investment firm to launch Oak Capital, The Real Deal has learned. The separation agreement was finalized Wednesday, Dunin said. Dunin plans to continue to focus on development and investment, taking a minority…

Mast Capital scores approval for Miami Beach condo project

Camilo Miguel Jr. and rendering of 4000 Alton Road Developer Mast Capital can now move forward with its plans for a luxury condo project in mid-Miami Beach. The Miami Beach City Commission unanimously approved three ordinances tied to the redevelopment of 4000 Alton Road at Wednesday’s commission meeting. The developer agreed to limit the…

Ares, Regis gather $1B to join ground lease race

Safehold now has competition. Global alternative investment manager Ares Management and Regis Group, a London-based global investor and operator, have formed Haven Capital to get in the field of ground-lease investments, Bisnow reported. Until recently, the niche but growing field was led by iStar-managed real estate investment trust Safehold.

Industrious partners with landlords to offer tenants satellite workplaces

Flexible-office provider Industrious is partnering on a program with office landlords that will give tenants the ability to use Industrious’ offices nationwide. Potentially providing an additional source of revenue in a bruising economy, Industrious is launching “Oasis Enterprise” with a pilot program at Granite Properties-owned buildings in Southern California…

Target to open 40 new stores a year; Q3 income jumps

While Amazon is adding giant fulfillment centers to satisfy online orders, Target is bulking up on smaller stores to move merchandise. In October alone, Target opened 18 new locations, adding to the 12 it had already added since the beginning of the year. Moving forward, the big-box retailer is planning on opening up to 40 stores a year, officials said at the…

Aventura office condo owners allege construction defects at Beacon Tower

The association for a 12-story office condo tower near Aventura accuses developer H&M Development of shoddy construction. The Beacon Tower of Aventura Commercial Condominium Association is suing the developer of the building at 20200 West Dixie Highway in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, according to documents filed last we…

Miami Beach asks for offers to develop lots near Lincoln Road

Miami Beach wants to develop parking lots near Lincoln Road into Class A office space, banking on demand fueled by executives migrating south. Developers can submit letters of intent by 3 p.m. on Jan. 11 for a public-private partnership to redevelop the three lots next to Lincoln Road between Alton Road and Meridian Avenue. Combined, the land could…

Developers score $15M construction loan for Miami townhouse development

A partnership of two local developers received a $15.3 million construction loan to build 30 luxury townhouses near South Miami. Miami-based Apollo Bank provided the loan for the proposed development at 6790 to 6880 Southwest 80th Street in Miami. The project is dubbed the Somi Subdivision, according to records. The borrowers are a company…

U.S. retail spending slows but still higher than last year

Americans are spending more money than they did at this time last year — and even last month — but the trend may slow as Covid-19 cases spike throughout the country. According to the latest statistics from the Census Bureau, American shoppers spent $553.3 billion in October, a 0.3 percent increase from $551.9 billion in September, and 5.7 percent above the…

Planning for North Bay Village’s NBV100

For the last week, the Village staff, the mayor and several groups of residents have been at Village Hall participating in a strategic exercise to imagine and create a Strategic Plan that will balance the needs of the current residents, the plans for the future, incorporate resiliency in response to climate change and finally get us unstuck. The hands on…

Miami commissioners reject proposals for marina redevelopment

For the second time in six years, the Miami City Commission deep-sixed proposals to redevelop two city-owned marinas on Virginia Key. Commissioners voted 3-2 to throw out all proposals, including an $80 million plan submitted by the top-ranked bidder Virginia Key LLC, a partnership between marina operators RCI Group and Suntex Marinas.

Questions surround $50M in EB-5 investments tied to former INS building: lawsuit

A Chinese investor is suing over a stalled mixed-use redevelopment project in Miami’s Upper Eastside neighborhood that generated more than $50 million from 100 EB-5 investors. Chun Liu, the Chinese investor living in Portland, Oregon, is suing a company that was set up to distribute the EB-5 funds for the redevelopment of the former U.S. Immigration and…

Shifting gears: Elion Partners pays $12M for Pompano Beach auto parts distribution center

Real estate investment firm Elion Partners bought a Pompano Beach distribution center for $11.65 million. The 94,000-square-foot center at 3141 Southwest 10th Street is part of a larger series of logistics purchases that Miami-based Elion plans to make in markets including Broward and Miami-Dade counties, according to a press release. Aftermarket parts and tools…

Mixed-use Delray Beach development on former Office Depot HQ site advances

Delray Beach board members gave partial initial approval to a proposed mixed-use development with about 600 residential units on the site of Office Depot’s former headquarters. The Delray Beach Site Plan Review and Appearance Board unanimously approved changes to a site plan, landscape plan and architectural elevation for the residential…

Mattos family pays $20M for Waterway Shoppes of Weston

The Mattos family expanded its South Florida holdings by buying a shopping center in Weston for $20.45 million. A company managed by Nicolas and Isabella Mattos — the children of Carlos Mattos, founder of car importer Hyundai Colombia Automotriz — bought the Waterway Shoppes of Weston at 2210-2282 Weston Road, according to records. The buying…

Melo Group Tops Off Miami Twin Towers

Downtown 5th, a downtown Miami mixed-use multifamily property with 1,042 units planned for two 52-story buildings, is moving closer to completion as construction crews have topped off the East Tower and expect to top off the West Tower later this month. Developer Melo Group expects construction to be completed in summer 2021 with pre-leasing…

Centennial Management Lands $20M Refi for Miami-Area Affordable Community

Centennial Management has received a $20 million HUD-insured loan to refinance Pembroke Park Apartments, a 244-unit affordable housing community in Pembroke Park, Fla. Greystone provided the Section 223(f) financing with a 35-year term and a low, fixed rate. According to Yardi Matrix information, Centennial previously financed the property in 2011…

Dorms no more: Student housing turns into high-end apartments

Developers are eyeing sparsely-populated student housing as an opportunity to create high-end apartments for professionals. According to data from Moody’s, 30 percent of public and private universities in the country are running deficits, the New York Times reported. And with fewer students on campus due to the pandemic, some are looking to close…

Miami-Dade seeks proposals to develop mixed-use project at Vizcaya station

Miami-Dade County issued a request for proposals to develop the property next to the Vizcaya Metrorail Station, near the entrance to Miami’s Brickell neighborhood. Proposals are due to the county by Nov. 30 for the 2.6-acre property at 3205 Southwest First Avenue, documents show. The development agreement would allow a multi-phased project to be built…

Miami Beach Convention Center hotel plan still alive

Development of a Miami Beach Convention Center Hotel has been delayed for an unknown period, but developer David Martin of MB Mixed Use Investment LLC said in a statement he is still confident in the project. On March 16, Miami Beach spokesperson Melissa Berthier told Miami Today this week, the developer notified the city that it was experiencing…

Chart: Miami-Dade Commercial Real Estate Sales Maintain Strength ~ October 2020 MLS

As can be seen in the chart above of the trailing two yearsof closed sales of Miami-Dade commercial property, both improved commercial property (with buildings) and vacant commercial land, recorded in the Miami MLS. October 2020 was again a strong month in line with recent, also strong, months. The Miami Multiple Listing Service (MLS) will not record all…

Miami Marine Stadium, if restored, couldn’t welcome public

Imagine the City of Miami spending more than $40 million to restore the iconic Marine Stadium only to be prohibited from using it for “public assembly” because that special use permit expired long ago after the stadium was closed in 1992 in the wake of Hurricane Andrew. That’s the reality facing city officials, who have been pushing for a zoning text…

Brightline pact has a Wynwood station on track

A binding deal between Miami-Dade and Brightline for a Miami-to-Aventura commuter rail line isn’t signed, but details of the project – including plans for a station in Wynwood – are coming into focus. County commissioners Nov. 13 approved a resolution directing incoming Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s administration to negotiate with the private…

Coral Gables Country Club tussles with city over rent relief

A resolution to grant a rent deferment for the Coral Gables Country Club is still under negotiation and has yet to reach an agreement with the city. During the Oct. 27 city commission meeting, Commissioner Jorge L. Fors Jr. was authorized to speak with country club’s CEO Anthony Di Donato to resolve and move forward with a deferred rent and payment plan only…

Miami Beach hunts for venue sponsorship revenue

Miami Beach commissioners, who seek to reduce the city’s dependence on tourism as that sector continues to falter, explored on Friday the first category of opportunities for economic expansion laid out by city administration: sponsorship opportunities and naming rights.  At a meeting of the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee last month…

Wynwood team recommends an adaptive re-use building

The Wynwood Design Review Committee is recommending approval of an adaptive re-use project designed to revive a high-profile corner in the booming Wynwood Arts District. The one-story building is at 2521 NW Third Ave., at the southeast corner of Northwest Third Avenue and 26th Street. The owner is David Lerner and the applicant is MKDA FL.

Albert Garcia: Wynwood leader aims to double 5.5 million visitor record

Albert Garcia considers himself an agent of change, a leader drawn to jobs and environments with steep challenges that offer equal or greater opportunities. Such is the case with his chairmanship of the Wynwood Business Improvement District (BID), the funding mechanism and overlaying organization that over the past decade has helped to transform…

Miami Beach asks for offers to develop lots near Lincoln Road

Miami Beach wants to develop parking lots near Lincoln Road into Class A office space, banking on demand fueled by executives migrating south. Developers can submit letters of intent by 3 p.m. on Jan. 11 for a public-private partnership to redevelop the three lots next to Lincoln Road between Alton Road and Meridian Avenue. Combined, the land could…

Developers score $15M construction loan for Miami townhouse development

A partnership of two local developers received a $15.3 million construction loan to build 30 luxury townhouses near South Miami. Miami-based Apollo Bank provided the loan for the proposed development at 6790 to 6880 Southwest 80th Street in Miami. The project is dubbed the Somi Subdivision, according to records. The borrowers are a company…

U.S. retail spending slows but still higher than last year

Americans are spending more money than they did at this time last year — and even last month — but the trend may slow as Covid-19 cases spike throughout the country. According to the latest statistics from the Census Bureau, American shoppers spent $553.3 billion in October, a 0.3 percent increase from $551.9 billion in September, and 5.7 percent above the…

Miami commissioners reject proposals for marina redevelopment

Biscayne Marine Partners’ rendering of new boat storage and marina facilityvirgin For the second time in six years, the Miami City Commission deep-sixed proposals to redevelop two city-owned marinas on Virginia Key. Commissioners voted 3-2 to throw out all proposals, including an $80 million plan submitted by the top-ranked bidder Virginia Key LLC…

8 Vital Questions (and Answers) for South Florida Real Estate Investors

MMG’s Director of Acquisitions, Marcos Puente, discusses the current state of the South Florida / Miami real estate market. More specifically, he addresses the factors to consider for South Florida real estate investors, and the direct impact of the pandemic in the area. He also dives into the future of the market with a positive…

Oversubscribed: Russell Galbut and Michael Liebowitz’s SPAC raises $115M

The blank check company formed by developer Russell Galbut and investor Michael S. Liebowitz raised $115 million, $15 million more than its $100 million goal. New Beginnings Acquisition Corp. closed its oversubscribed initial public offering in early November, after forming the special-purpose acquisition company last month, Liebowitz said. The firm plans to invest…

Climate concern driving down sales and prices along coastal Florida: report

Concern over climate change may be driving down sales volume and prices for homes along coastal Florida, according to a recently released report. The study published by two researchers at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania found that from 2013 to 2018, sales in coastal Florida census tracts with the most exposure to sea level rise declined…

Apartment developer buys South Miami Winn-Dixie site from Bacardi JV

Apartment developer AvalonBay Communities paid nearly $19 million for the Winn-Dixie property in downtown South Miami. Property records show 5850 S.W. 73 Street LLC sold the 1.9-acre site at 5850 Southwest 73rd Street to Avalon SoMi LLC, an affiliate of the real estate investment trust. The seller is tied to the Bacardi family and Henry Pino’s Alta Development…

Sapir Corp names Sharon Raz CEO

Sapir Corp’s Alex Sapir and Sharon Raz Sapir Corp has named former Elad U.S. Holding CFO Sharon Raz as its next CEO, the development firm announced Monday. The appointment comes a week after the company’s previous CEO, Amir Richulsky, resigned to pursue a job opportunity in a different industry. “Sharon Raz is a seasoned leader with just the right…

Back to the future: Automat dining concept gets Covid upgrade

A century-old dining concept is being resurrected in the New York metro area, as restaurant owners struggle for customers amid the continued coronavirus restrictions. Automat Kitchen in Jersey City and Brooklyn Dumpling Shop — in Manhattan — are updating the automat, in which meals are served to customers via vending machine-like lockers…

MMG’s Marcos Puente Featured on Retail Real Estate Expert Roundup

N3 Real Estate, a national real estate company specializing in retail properties, aggregated a collection of insights from retail real estate experts regarding the state of retail real estate in the coming year or two. Answers were provided by a number retail professionals, and MMG’s Marcos Puente provided his view on where retail property valuations…

Miami-Dade moves forward with multimillion-dollar Brightline deal

On Friday, the Miami-Dade County Commission unanimously approved a resolution authorizing further discussions with Brightline, Florida East Coast Railway and the county to create a commuter rail. The commuter train system would operate between downtown Miami and Aventura with as many as eight stations in Miami-Dade, and it could extend as far…

Michael Gianaris to President-elect Biden: Cancel rent

State Sen. Michael Gianaris and President-elect Joe Biden (Getty) State Sen. Michael Gianaris is calling on President-elect Joe Biden to provide relief for New Yorkers — in the form of canceling rent. The Democratic politician, who represents Astoria, Queens, and, as the deputy majority leader of the Senate is the second highest–ranking member of the legislature in New…

Pre-pandemic evictions resume in Miami-Dade

Residential and commercial evictions filed before March 13 can resume in Miami-Dade County, the mayor’s office announced on Friday. On one of his last days in office, Mayor Carlos Gimenez directed the Miami-Dade Police Department to begin enforcing writs of possessions for all cases filed on or before March 12, when the mayor declared a state of emergency due…

Are we still in a recession? : What to expect from the NBER business cycle dating committee

The Downturn and Rebound April 29, 2020: In its advance estimate, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported that real GDP for the first quarter of 2020 fell at a 4.8% annual rate. May 8, 2020: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that nonfarm payrolls fell by 20.5 million in April—the largest one-month percentage decline on record (dating back to 1939).

Owners of Ritz-Carlton South Beach and Bal Harbour hotels merge with Sagamore

The three families that own Ritz-Carlton hotels in South Beach and Bal Harbour, as well as the Sagamore Hotel in Miami Beach, merged ownership of their properties. The Ben-Josef Group, which owns the Sagamore, and partners Flag Luxury Group and Lionstone Group, which own the two Ritz-Carltons, secured a joint merger, and could bring the Sagamore under…

From underwear to surgical masks: Isaco sells Miami Lakes warehouse for $15M

A warehouse in Miami Lakes will move from making underwear to masks, after a medical device manufacturer paid $15 million for the 156,000-square-foot building. DemeTech, based in Miami Lakes and led by Luis Arguello Jr., bought the property at 5980 Miami Lakes Drive, according to a press release. DemeTech’s products include N95 respirator masks…

Manhattan-based asset manager, down on NYC, opens Miami office

As lockdowns continue to affect New York, Marathon Asset Management is setting up an office in Miami. While the investing team will remain in New York, the new Miami office will be available for all other personnel. Read more New Yorkers snap up high-end rentals in Miami Beach Following the money, NY brokers seek licenses in other states Return to the office?

Sale Of Doral Industrial Warehouse Negotiated

DiGiacomo Group’s Stephen J. DiGiacomo, SIOR, Roger Zuniga and Patricia Marquez negotiated the sale of an industrial warehouse totaling 107,667 square feet located at 1910 NW 97th Avenue in Doral. Buyer Park 1910 NW 97 Ave Owner LLC purchased the warehouse, which is situated on just over 6 acres, from Clover Logistic 1910 PROPERTY HOLDINGS…

Knotel may slash its global portfolio by 60%

Knotel once hoped to be the next WeWork. And as the pandemic rages on, it’s facing similar headwinds as its co-working rival. The flex office provider is looking to trim 60 percent of its 4.8 million-square-foot global portfolio, and slash its leases in the U.S. and Canada from 3.4 million square feet to just 500,000 square feet, Business Insider reported. Knotel’s goal is to…

Miami-Dade’s Retail Market Posts Net Negative Absorption, Rent Declines in Third Quarter

Miami-Dade County’s retail market posted 120,934 square feet of negative net absorption in the third quarter, according to research from Colliers International. The decline is a sizable improvement from the second quarter, a period where the market gave back 230,698 square feet of retail space. Year-to-date absorption remains positive for Miami-Dade County…

IHG Breaks Ground on First Atwell Suites Hotel

IHG Hotels & Resorts has begun construction on the first property of its latest all-suites brand. The Atwell Suites hotel, which is owned by Francisco Arocha, Pedro Villar, Albert Ovadia and Sunview Cos., is located in Miami and is expected to open by the summer of 2021. The 90-key Atwell Suites hotel is aimed at the upper-midscale traveler who opts for longer stays…

Sweetwater District Industrial Building Brokered for $44 Million

Newmark has brokered the $44 million sale of a 312,000-square-foot industrial facility located within Dolphin Commerce Park in Miami. Tech Data Corp. sold the property to Badia Spices, a local manufacturer and distributor of spices and herbs that will eventually move into the building. Built in 2002, the property at 2200 NW 112th Avenue is situated…

Trump plan would let real estate firms avoid SALT deduction cap

The Treasury Department has announced a new measure that would allow many businesses to get around the cap on state and local tax deductions. Congressional Republicans and the Trump administration implemented the $10,000 cap as part of their 2017 tax overhaul. But it has been met with heavy resistance from both the real estate industry and Democrats…

Federal Realty’s Proposed Redevelopment Of The Shops at Sunset Place Falls Through

The Shops at Sunset Place in South Miami will not be redeveloped as planned, its lead developer said in Securities and Exchange Commission filings and on a conference call last week. The long-struggling mall had been slated for a partial teardown and the addition of three new 17-story towers that would house apartments and hotel rooms. “There’s nothing…”

Logistics Firm Clover Systems Completes $16.2 Million Sale-Leaseback of Warehouse in Doral

Logistics firm Clover Systems has sold a 113,891-square-foot warehouse in Doral for $16.2 million. The family-owned company signed a short-term lease to remain at 1910 NW 97th Avenue, which is situated nine miles east of Miami International Airport and 15 miles east of downtown Miami. The buyer was Los Angeles-based 1910 NW 97th Ave Owner LLC, an…

Studies suggest targeted lockdowns of restaurants, gyms, hotels to curb Covid

Going to a restaurant, gym or hotel? It may not be as safe as you’d think. A new study by researchers at Stanford University and Northwestern University tracked the movement of people and compared it to Covid outbreaks, according to Bloomberg. The study estimated that just 10 percent of locations account for 85 percent of predicted infections. In Chicago, for…

Terra proposes 1,384-unit apartment complex near Magic City Casino

David Martin, Central Shopping Plaza, and a rendering of the apartment complex Terra, one of South Florida’s most prolific developers, is looking to build a seven-building apartment complex behind the Central Shopping Plaza in Miami’s Flagami neighborhood. The proposed development would take up 2.5 million square feet and add 1,384 apartments to the 38-acre…

Third time’s the charm: North Miami Beach approves $1.5B Dezer project

For the third time, and in spite of opposition from many nearby Eastern Shores dwellers, the North Miami Beach City Commission narrowly approved a development agreement and new zoning plan that will enable Dezer Development to move forward with its $1.5 billion plan to redevelop the Intracoastal Mall. Next, the developer will need to obtain Florida…

‘Nowhere To Put ‘Em’: Boating Craze Pushes Marinas Into Hot Property Territory

Integra Investments principal Victor Ballestas accidentally stumbled into the marina industry. After having worked on numerous condominium developments, he co-developed a project in Bay Harbor Islands, near Miami, that had a marina component with 14 slips. Seeing the high demand for them, his firm went on to buy marinas in the Florida Keys and even…

Downtown Miami developer seeks 37-story tower with all off-site parking

A 37-story mixed-use residential tower is planned for the heart of downtown Miami. To be called The District, the project will include 343 residential units, 2,297 square feet of commercial-retail use, and zero parking. The developer is requesting a waiver to allow all parking off-site. The city’s Urban Development Review Board has voted unanimously to…

Ocean Drive overhaul won’t come quickly, mayor says

Updating Miami Beach’s newly-named Art Deco Cultural District has been the talk of the city commission all fall, but a major change isn’t likely overnight.  At a workshop Sept. 17, commissioners and city staff brainstormed ideas for re-imagining the Mixed-Use Entertainment District, which officials agreed hosted many good business operators but also…

Creative minds use ingenuity to map road to economic recovery

As Miami-Dade continues to battle the novel coronavirus under “new normal” conditions, its path to recovery and prosperity relies in large part on creative minds whose ingenuity will pave the way. Thanks to the inventiveness of John Stuart, director of FIU’s Miami Beach Urban Studio, home to one of the largest 3D printing labs in the state, thousands of lives…

You can’t put Humpty Dumpty together again in South Beach

Miami Beach is stumbling through a minefield that could blow up its economy. Impacts of a worsening pandemic are battering the city’s economic driver, its visitor industry, causing officials to assess diversifying away from reliance on guests.  Nobody has hit the panic button, but it is at hand. The city spent years and millions to modernize a convention…

Foreclosure filings picked up in October up despite moratoriums

Despite federal and state moratoriums, foreclosure activity in the United States ballooned last month. Nearly 12,000 properties had some kind of foreclosure filing in October 2020, up 20 percent from last month but down 79 percent from October 2019, according to a monthly report from Attom Data. That largely continued a trend of growing foreclosures that began…

Video: Related’s Stephen Ross Discusses COVID CRE Effects on CNBC Power Lunch

Stephen Ross, the chairman and majority owner of The Related Companies, a global real estate development firm he founded in 1972 that has been and continues to be very active in Miami, and owner of the Miami Dolphins, discusses reopening and the state of commercial real estate projects like Hudson Yards in New York in elsewhere. This discussion concentrates…

Investcorp sells nearly $1B in multifamily assets

The private equity firm Investcorp has sold eight multifamily properties across the U.S. for $900 million. Investcorp said it sold the properties to multiple buyers, though it did not disclose specifically who those were. The buildings are located in four states — Arizona, California, Florida and New York — and were acquired by the company in 2016 and 2017, according…

Office unease: Tenants are paying up but staying away

A pattern has emerged among office landlords reporting their third quarter results: The vast majority of tenants kept up with rent payments, but an equal number also kept their workers away. Investment firm and REIT executives reported strong rent collections across much of their office portfolios, a positive sign for their immediate bottom line. At many of…

Negotiating: Strategic Advantages of Backup Offers for Commercial Property Buyers

I regularly am in situations where a buyer is interested in some commercial property that is already under contract. It is the exception where I don’t recommend submitting a backup offer. There are two principal advantages to a buyer of submitting a backup offer in an effort to put a backup contract in place. Both are strategic advantages. “This is the bottom line; win the…”

Video: How COVID-19 is Impacting Commercial Real Estate

In this video from Yahoo Finance, Doubleline Capital Portfolio Manager Morris Chen joins Julia La Roche and Zack Guzman of Yahoo Finance to discuss in some detail the latest commercial real estate outlook amid COVID-19. They talk about the variance in pain among various commercial real estate sectors as well as the offsetting positives of an extremely low…

From inflation targeting to average inflation targeting : The Fed’s new long-run monetary framework

Since 1996, it has been understood among Fed policymakers that the (undeclared) target for inflation was around 2%. In January 2012, Chairman Ben Bernanke made this implicit inflation target explicit and official, thereby aligning the Fed’s inflation target with that of all the major central banks. In this framework, when inflation has approached or exceeded…

Bridge, PGIM Secure $67M Construction Loan For South Florida Cold Storage Project

Joint venture partners Bridge Development Partners, one of South Florida’s most active industrial real estate developers, and PGIM Real Estate, the global real estate investment and financing business of Prudential Financial, Inc., announced it has secured $67 million in financing to develop Bridge Point Cold Logistics Center, a 312,103-square-foot speculative cold storage facility in Hialeah. The loan was issued…

Sapir Corp CEO Amir Richulsky resigns

After about half a year as Sapir Corp’s CEO, Amir Richulsky is leaving for another firm. The developer announced Richulsky’s resignation in a Sunday filing on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, where the company’s bonds are listed. The disclosure did not specify where Richulsky is going, but notes that his tenure will officially end in December. Richulsky, previously Sapir Corp’s…

Office, apartment REITs get shot in the arm from vaccine news

New York office and apartment landlords received a rare shot of good news Monday with Pfizer’s announcement that it’s getting closer to developing an effective Covid-19 vaccine. An early analysis found that Pfizer’s vaccine was more than 90 percent effective in treating Covid-19 on clinical volunteers. The company said it could potentially manufacture enough vaccines for…

Oak Street Real Estate Capital buys Oakland Park Walgreens for $7M

Oak Street Jim Hennessey and Marc Zahr with 3100 North Andrews Avenue, Oakland Park The flurry of Walgreens trades continues with an Oakland Park store selling for $7.3 million. Walgreen Co. sold the store at 3100 North Andrews Avenue. The buyer is a company affiliated with Chicago-based private equity firm Oak Street Real Estate Capital. In June, Oak Street…

Lame-duck Congress will resume stimulus package talks

After several long days of vote counting last week, former Vice President Joe Biden emerged as the president-elect, Republicans gained more seats in the House and control of the Senate hinges on the results of two run-off elections in Georgia. Congress will now enter a lame-duck session, where little is typically accomplished even under normal circumstances…

Real estate to Trump: Produce evidence or move on

Former Vice President Joe Biden declared victory in the contentious 2020 presidential race Saturday morning after securing the clinching number of Electoral College votes from Pennsylvania. President Donald Trump, however, refused to concede Saturday, vowing that he would “not rest until the American People have the honest vote count,” likely setting the stage…

GLP pays $16 million for Doral warehouse

A family that owns an international logistics company sold a Doral warehouse for $16.2 million. The Rincón family, which owns and operates the Clover Group, sold the 100,000-plus-square-foot building at 1910 Northwest 97th Avenue, according to records. The buyer shares a Santa Monica address with GLP Capital Partners, an investment firm that…

Hard-hit retail, restaurants, construction show big jobs gains in October

A handful of industries that have sustained the most damage from the pandemic reported the biggest job gains in October, pointing to an improving economy despite Covid-19’s surging numbers nationwide. Travel and leisure companies added 271,000 jobs last month, retail added 104,000 positions and construction gained 84,000 jobs, according to data released…

Miami commercial brokerage alleges it was stiffed on medical office commission

A Miami-based commercial real estate brokerage alleges that a buyer and seller cut it out of its commission on a medical office deal. The brokerage, Real Capital Partners, sued the buyer and seller of the three-building, 10-acre medical office campus at 7400, 7500 and 7800 Southwest 87th Avenue in Miami, according to the lawsuit filed last month in Miami-Dade …

Prospect of divided government rallies real estate stocks

During a week of uncertainty for the country, the stock market had its best performance since April. Real estate stocks were among the big gainers as votes for president and Congress were cast and counted. Top performers in the industry included large service companies and asset-management firms, proptech and residential home builders. Gains were lower for…

Video: “It’s going to take longer, and it’s going to cost more”: Craig Solomon on the real estate capital stack

Craig Solomon is one of the most active lenders and investors in a market that’s rife with uncertainty. His firm, Square Mile Capital, has made some recent big bets on last-mile real estate and is quickly becoming one of the country’s largest owners of soundstage space, with acquisitions such as Silvercup Studios in New York City and CBS Television City in Los Angeles.

Black Creek buys Davie apartments for $79M

Real estate management firm Black Creek Group bought a 340-unit apartment complex in Davie for $79.1 million. Black Creek, based in Denver and led by CEO Raj Dhanda, bought the complex at 11000 Cameron Court for about $233,000 a unit, according to records. Los Angeles-based investment firm CIM Group sold the complex, which was built in 1998.

Suburban office demand spikes as working from home continues

Interest in small suburban offices is picking up as more people continue to work from home, and relocate outside of major urban centers. For IWG, the short-term office company, deals for its downtown New York offices have collapsed by 30 percent since the virus outbreak, while activity in southern Connecticut has surged more than 40 percent, according to Bloomberg.

Election puts real estate’s generous tax breaks in spotlight

For many in the real estate industry, having a developer in the Oval Office has brought an uncomfortable amount of media attention to a long-standing practice: avoiding taxes. A series of recent articles in The New York Times and other outlets have showcased the many ways developers and investors use tax breaks to lower their bills — sometimes to zero.

Mall giant Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield says its real estate is worth 11% less than year ago

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield saw U.S. rental income tumble 39 percent year-over-year in the third quarter, the company disclosed Sunday. The retail landlord and investor reported that rental income from U.S. operations, including from 39 Westfield-branded malls, fell to $464 million. Across its overall portfolio, which includes major…

Has there been a “Trump effect” on property values?

Despite Trump’s claim that he will boost property values, it’s not clear that those have grown that fast in places where he won handily in 2016 (Getty; iStock) In July, President Trump announced that the Department of Housing and Urban Development would repeal an Obama-era rule requiring localities that receive federal funding to break down barriers to fair…

What four years of Trump has done for real estate

An assessment of how President Donald Trump affected real estate in terms of foreign investment, housing, taxes and general political sentiment. (Getty) Nearly four years ago, Donald Trump was sworn in as the nation’s first developer-in-chief, surrounded by prominent figures from New York City real estate. The sight of his industry friends on the national stage…

Voters decide South Miami, Surfside and Bal Harbour real estate referendums

Voters weighed in on South Miami zoning rules, Surfside public property sales and Bal Harbour building heights, producing mixed results from Tuesday’s election. South Miami A referendum in the city of South Miami failed to pass on Election Day, so zoning vote requirements will remain the same. South Miami Referendum 1 proposed replacing a unanimous five…

‘The Money Never Stops Coming’: Miami’s Office Market Is Hot, Despite Pandemic

Plenty of people have been speculating about the end of the office since the coronavirus spurred a work-from-home revolution. But Brian Gale, vice chair of Cushman & Wakefield of Florida, has been seeing something different. People have always come to Florida for sunshine and a lack of state income taxes, Gale said during a Bisnow webinar Oct. 20.

Pharrell Williams Is Opening A ‘Spiritual WiFi’ Hotel In Miami

Musician Pharrell Williams is teaming up with Miami nightlife king David Grutman and Dreamscape Cos. to open The Goodtime Hotel in Miami Beach. The 266-room property at 601 Washington Avenue will take up an entire city block, and will have a pool deck, a restaurant, a recording studio and 45K SF of retail. The seven-story property’s exterior was redone by…

Voters reject Terra’s proposal to redevelop Miami Beach Marina with condo tower

By a slim margin, city voters rejected Terra’s proposal to redevelop the Miami Beach Marina, replacing a commercial building anchored by Monty’s Sunset with a 38-story luxury condo tower. According to the final vote tally, 51 percent of Miami Beach’s electorate voted no on a ballot question asking residents to sell the air rights above the retail complex to Terra, which…

Miami Beach voters reject proposal to redevelop marina

Miami Beach voters rejected a proposal to redevelop the Miami Beach Marina but approved expansion plans for the Wolfsonian-FIU museum. Two other ballot questions allowing increases in FAR (floor area ratio or density) – one to incentivize restoration of historic buildings and another to incentivize bicycle parking and help property owners meet new building…

Real estate on edge with election too close to call

From an undisclosed location in Manhattan, billionaire developer and local radio host John Catsimatidis told New Yorkers that President Donald Trump’s chances of winning the 2020 presidential race looked good. “The betting line in Las Vegas is laying 3 to 1 for Trump to win,” he said on conservative talk radio station 77 WABC late Tuesday, while “manning…”

Miami Beach voters overwhelmingly approve Wolfsonian-FIU expansion

A super majority of Miami Beach’s electorate approved the Wolfsonian-FIU’s plans to expand its footprint on Washington Avenue, one of the city’s long forgotten retail streets that is now undergoing redevelopment. On Election Day, nearly 64 percent of city voters approved a ballot question asking them to increase the museum’s Floor Area Ratio, or FAR…

Suburban office demand spikes as working from home continues

Interest in small suburban offices is picking up as more people continue to work from home, and relocate outside of major urban centers. For IWG, the short-term office company, deals for its downtown New York offices have collapsed by 30 percent since the virus outbreak, while activity in southern Connecticut has surged more than 40 percent, according to Bloomberg.

Key Biscayne voters approve $100M bond tied to climate change

Key Biscayne Key Biscayne residents voted to pass a referendum that would allow the village to issue $100 million in general obligation bonds to deal with the effects of climate change. More than 56 percent of the roughly 6,100 voters in Key Biscayne approved the referendum in Tuesday’s general election. About $40 million could go toward mitigating the effects of sea…

JV developing Hialeah spec cold storage facility lands $67M construction loan

A joint venture developing a speculative cold storage project in Hialeah scored a $67 million construction loan. The joint venture between industrial developer Bridge Development Partners and PGIM Real Estate, the real estate investment and financing business of Prudential Financial, plans to break ground on the project later this month…

Miami Beach seeks to end tourism economic dependence

Miami Beach is a world-renowned tourist destination, but commissioners are hoping to shift the city’s economy away from dependence on this singular industry. Covid, Hurricane Irma and the Zika virus are just some events within the past 15 years that have put a damper on visitation dollars, Commissioner Mark Samuelian said at a meeting Friday, and the city…

Greenberg Traurig Assists Atlantic Pacific Communities with Master Ground Lease for Quail Roost Transit Village

Miami office Real Estate Practice Shareholder Nancy B. Lash and Land Development Shareholder Ryan D. Bailine assisted longtime client Atlantic Pacific Communities in obtaining approval for a 90-year master ground lease from the Miami-Dade County Commission to accommodate the building of mixed-use, transit-oriented development Quail Roost Transit…

PortMiami huge project spending list wins county OK

PortMiami projects costing Miami-Dade more than $301.5 million won OKs just two days before commissioners OK’d waiving up to $285.5 million for cruise lines crushed by Covid-19. Commissioners signed off last month on construction deals required by prior berthing and development pacts. Each came via competitive bid, Deputy Mayor Jack Osterholt wrote. The priciest…

Tim Schmand: Spurs Lincoln Road Business improvement district change

When Tim Schmand first visited Lincoln Road in Miami Beach in the 1980s, it was a far cry from the chic, artsy and bustling thoroughfare it is today. In fact, he said, it was largely abandoned. That didn’t stop him from exploring, learning about its every nook and cranny and developing an affinity for its unique aspects, ingenious and idiosyncratic alike. “It was just a magical…”

Buildings of Tomorrow: Future Warehouses

Amid this prolonged uncertainty, everyone agrees that the pandemic’s impacts are yet to be fully seen. Nine months in, the health crisis is about to trigger a global economic crisis, and real estate sectors are reacting differently—some trends, that were already underway, are accentuated, while others are disrupted completely from their original course. One of…

Real estate industry in suspense as election hangs in balance

The presidential election remained too close to call early Wednesday morning, leaving the future uncertain for the real estate industry. Polls in the final days before the election largely predicted Joe Biden would defeat President Donald Trump in what’s been one of the most divisive presidential races in U.S. history. But hours after polls closed, crucial…

Real estate pros say Trump better for market than Biden: survey

Asked if Donald Trump or Joe Biden would be a better president for real estate, many industry professionals surveyed by The Real Deal picked the president, but more in some cities than others — and not at all in Chicago. Some 465 brokers, executives, and others who make their living in the industry answered the survey question: “Which presidential candidate…”

Adding flavor: Badia Spices pays $44M for Sweetwater warehouse

Talk about mixing sugar and spice. Badia Spices bought a warehouse in Sweetwater for $44 million. The Doral-based spices and herbs manufacturer paid about $141 a square foot for the 313,000-square-foot building at 2200 Northwest 112th Avenue in Dolphin Commerce Park, according to a press release. It is the largest warehouse sale by both…

Core real estate funds delay investors from cashing out

Pension fund investors are seeking to take cash out of real estate funds as property values fall, like at Water Tower Place in Chicago (Photo via iStock; Wikipedia Commons) Pension fund investors are seeking to take cash out of real estate funds as property values fall, putting managers of those funds in a difficult position. More than 15 of the 25 open-ended “core” funds…

Integra, partner move forward with $58 million senior housing project in Allapattah

A partnership between a private equity group and a nonprofit broke ground last week on a 271-unit affordable senior housing project in Miami’s Allapattah neighborhood. Integra Investments and Elderly Housing Development & Operations Corp., or EHDOC, plan to invest $58 million to develop the 13-story building at 1396 Northwest 36th Street, according…

Americans stand united on one thing: NIMBYism

Political polarization is at a fever pitch, but Trump and Biden supporters seem to have found common ground on one issue: NIMBYism. Nearly 75 percent of U.S. residents oppose policies to increase housing density in their own neighborhoods, though more than half think the government should provide developers with incentives to build more housing. Opposition…

Mall owners CBL Properties and PREIT file for bankruptcy

The Covid-accelerated retail apocalypse has claimed two more victims. Mall owners CBL Properties & Associates and Pennsylvania REIT (PREIT) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sunday, adding to the growing list of retail and mall owners that have faced a financial reckoning this year. Chattanooga-based CBL Properties first announced plans to file for bankruptcy in…

Covid survivor: Construction spending up from a year ago

Construction spending this year is up 4.1 percent from last year, according to new data for September. During the first nine months of the year, some $1.058 trillion has been put toward public and private construction, compared with $1.016 trillion for the same period in 2019. The housing sector powered the gain, though growth tapered off in September.

Wynwood nightclub building hits the market

A nightclub building in Wynwood is hitting the market, unpriced. Miami-based commercial brokerage Metro 1 has the listing for the property at 150 Northwest 24th Street. The sole tenant is the nightclub Rácket, according to a release. It is operated by Miami Beach-based Homecookin’ Hospitality Group, led by Angel Ferbes. The owner is HJK Holding, led by CEO…

Russell Galbut and partner launch blank check company, plan to raise $100M

Developer Russell Galbut and investor Michael S. Liebowitz formed a blank check company aimed at raising $100 million to invest in travel, hospitality, fintech, insurance tech, proptech and other industries impacted by the pandemic. The company, called New Beginnings Acquisition Corp. plans to sell 10 million shares priced at $10 each, according to a release. It joins a…

Open air windfalls: Shopping centers breeze past malls in their recovery

Since reopening in May, Miami’s Upper Buena Vista has seen its foot traffic surpass normal pre-Covid levels, according to the shopping center. And the mixed-use “pocket-village” with 21 stores, 12 of which have opened during the pandemic and five more that are slated to open soon, is now back to almost full occupancy. The increase in business for the 60,000-square…

Atlantic Pacific’s plan for mixed-use affordable housing project near Cutler Bay advances

Atlantic Pacific Communities’ plans for a mixed-use development near Cutler Bay, with at least 500 residential units including affordable housing, are moving forward. Miami-Dade County last week approved a 90-year master ground lease for a subsidiary of Miami-based Atlantic Pacific, led by CEO Howard Cohen. The development, called Quail Roost Transit Village…

Fed Releases Proposal for Community Reinvestment Act Reform, Seeks Comments

The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) is a federal law that requires federally insured banks to meet the credit needs of people in their communities while meeting safety and soundness standards. At the time of its 1977 passage, lawmakers were concerned about unequal access to credit and policies such as redlining, especially in low-and moderate-income…

The impact of COVID-19 on U.S. states’ economic activity : State-level GDP data show the second quarter was much worse than the first

View on GeoFRED® GDP comes in various forms—for the nation as a whole and also for individual U.S. states. The map above shows the change in real GDP in each U.S. state for the first quarter of 2020. This was at the start of the pandemic, and some states were hit hard. The worst declines were in Louisiana (-11.91%), Delaware (-11.43%), Wyoming (-10.53%), Hawaii…

“We are erring on the side of having too much capacity”: Amazon reports massive Q3

How much capacity is too much? For Amazon, the limit doesn’t exist. At least not yet. The e-commerce giant — which has been adding warehouses at a dizzying clip across the nation — is on track to expand its fulfillment and transportation capacity by 50 percent, it said. The company has already spent $4.7 billion on property and equipment. The Jeff Bezos-led…

Creative Ways to Repurpose Abandoned Malls & Big-Box Stores After COVID-19

Many large retail spaces are sitting empty because of retailers going out of business, but there are novel strategies to reuse these spaces Although the struggles of shopping malls and big-box stores aren’t new, as eCommerce has been cutting into their sales for years, the COVID-19 pandemic has been the final straw for many retailers.

Denver-Based Company Pays $13.1M In Off-Market Industrial Acquisition

With a just-closed, off-market buy in Hialeah, Denver-based EverWest Real Estate Investors has expanded its strategy of investing and improving assets in prime industrial locations. Its latest purchase is located at 1101 E. 33rd St., an infill location in the heart of Miami’s Hialeah industrial submarket. EverWest purchased the 160,000-square-foot building for…

Pharrell, David Grutman partner with developer to launch South Beach hotel

Developer Eric Birnbaum brought on star power to launch his Washington Avenue hotel in Miami Beach. Singer-songwriter and producer Pharrell Williams and hospitality mogul David Grutman are partnering with Birnbaum on the Goodtime Hotel, a 266-room hotel on Washington Avenue between Sixth and Seventh streets, which is set to open early next year.

Bell Partners pays $94 million for two Boca Raton apartment complexes

An apartment investment and management company bought a pair of multifamily complexes in Boca Raton for a combined $94.25 million. An affiliate of Greensboro, North Carolina-based Bell Partners, led by CEO Jon Bell, bought the complexes at 5500 Broken Sound Boulevard and 950 Northwest Broken Sound Parkway, according to records. Built in 2018…

Photos Show the Massive $452 Million River Landing Project Now Complete

River Landing Shops & Residence, a massive mixed-use complex, is now open on the Miami River. It took nearly a decade to develop the project. Developer Urban-X Group first put the former Mahi Shrine Auditorium property where River Landing is located under contract in 2011. River Landing is a $452 million development with 2.2 million square feet…

$11.6M Sale of Former Newspaper Printing Facility in Metro Miami Arranged

Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $11.6 million sale of the former Miami Herald Printing Facility in Doral. The three-story warehouse spans 118,993 square feet and features 15 dock-high positions, one grade-level ramp and clear heights from 10 feet to 46 feet. The property was built in 2013 and is situated at 3500 NW 89th Court, 14 miles west of downtown…

$23 Million Miramar Office Sale Brokered

Cushman & Wakefield has facilitated the $22.6 million sale of Miramar Tech Center, a 56,710-square-foot Class A office property in Miramar, Fla. Scott O’Donnell, Mike Ciadella, Dominic Montazemi, Greg Miller and Miguel Alcivar negotiated on behalf of the seller, United Data Technologies. The brokerage’s Jason Hochman secured a $13.6 million acquisition loan for…

Miami board again votes against a downtown Melo skyscraper

A Miami review board has unanimously recommended denial of plans for a skyscraper downtown from The Melo Group, advice the outgoing city planning director ignored for another Melo project that is now rising. The denial vote Oct. 21 is rare for the Urban Development Review Board, whose role is to advise the planning director. The latest Melo proposal…

Commercial Property Borrowing Cost Quarterly 2020 Q3: 5-Year Treasury Remains Naught-y

Yields on 5-year U.S. Treasury Notes continue to remain at lows reached as we began the era of COVID. As can be seen in the chart above, these rates, most closely tracked for commercial real estate financing cost, plummeted from what were already considered low levels to under 50 basis points (0.5%), barely hovering over zilch, where they have been since. Though…

Atlanta Fed: Beige Book Finds Slow Improvement but an Economy Still Lagging

A now-familiar pattern—economic growth picking up but still below pre-COVID levels—prevailed across the Southeast over the past several weeks. But two new factors joined the pandemic to hamstring commerce, as Hurricanes Laura and Sally disrupted energy production and transmission and damaged crops, farming infrastructure, and property across coastal…

Chart: August Miami-Dade Unemployment Level Reaches Lowest Level Since March

From its peak of 14.5% reached in only the prior month, the unemployment rate in Miami-Dade county plummeted in August (8/1) to 8.1%, the lowest level since March when unemployment had jsut started to creep up but was still in low single digits (3.7%). The continuing effects of COVID-19 on employment, and thus the economy, in the Miami area continue can be…

Saks Fifth Avenue Lender Looks To Foreclose On Miami Store

The pandemic has pounded traditional retailers. Landlords and lenders involved with properties ranging from large malls to urban shopping areas are sizing up their options — and some are playing tough. Lenders to the Saks Fifth Avenue store at Miami’s Dadeland Mall are foreclosing on its owner, The Wall Street Journal reported. The owner defaulted in April…

South Florida by the numbers: 2020 presidential election and real estate

“South Florida by the numbers” is a web feature that catalogs the most notable, quirky and surprising real estate statistics. You may know that Election Day is Nov. 3. (With all kidding aside, however, will we know who is the winner by the next time this column is published?) Some pundits are predicting a close and heavily contested election, with the added…

Biscayne Boulevard residential tower with grocery wins OK

A large development bringing together more than 500 residential units and a major grocer has garnered a positive vote. Crescent Heights of America Inc. and its affiliated entities propose 2900 Biscayne, a 38-story mixed-use tower on land at 2900 Biscayne Blvd., and the city’s Urban Development Review Board unanimously recommended approval. The site is at 2900…

Poor hospitality: Hotel owners in big cities hit major tipping point

All of the lights in the Hilton Times Square have been pitch black for weeks — one of several ominous signs for hotel owners in New York and other large cities around the country. The owner of the 478-room property, just blocks away from Broadway and Bryant Park, disclosed plans to the state’s Labor Department last month to permanently shut its doors and lay off…

Supreme Court shift could favor rent law challengers

When landlord groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging New York’s rent law last year, they already had their eyes on the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, with the appointment of a sixth conservative judge, their case may have a better shot at being heard by the nation’s highest court. Amy Coney Barrett was sworn in Monday night as the 115th justice in the court’s history. 

Miami-Miami Beach ferry service ‘at one-yard line’

Poseidon Ferry LLC, soon to offer daily waterborne commuter transportation between Miami and Miami Beach, will officially launch with an evening Music Cruise on Nov. 6, said CEO Johnathan Silva. The company’s core business, commuter service – still in the doldrums of permitting – should follow soon. “We’re at the one-yard line right now…”

Super Bowl economic impact touches down at $571 million

Fueled by shrinking supply and rising demand, Miami-Dade single-family home sales are close to a buying frenzy, with median sale prices increasing for 106 consecutive months and rising 15.2% in the year that ended Sept. 30, figures from the Miami Association of Realtors show. The average single-family home now sells for $435,000, September figures show. The hottest…

Cross-bay transit is vital, but blank-check deal is all wrong

Miami-Dade made a costly bet plopping down $8 million for designs of a multi-billion-dollar monorail in a deal with a global firm whose true interest is a mammoth gambling resort. The consortium that includes Malaysian casino mogul Genting aims to build a monorail linking Miami to Miami Beach and then operate it. But taxpayers would repay the group…

Life Time launches preleasing of $500M Coral Gables mixed-use multifamily project

Life Time launched preleasing of a major mixed-use multifamily development in Coral Gables that will include a 70,000-square-foot athletic resort and a 22,000-square-foot shared workspace component. Nolan Reynolds International is set to complete the $500 million, 1.2 million-square-foot project previously known as Gables Station. Life Time is…

Miami developer sued for running boat over Biscayne Bay swimmer’s leg

A Miami real estate developer is facing allegations that he ran over a swimmer with his boat in Biscayne Bay near Bay Harbor Islands, slicing her leg and causing permanent injuries. Theresa Murray filed suit in Miami-Dade Circuit Court Court on Monday, alleging that Irwin Tauber’s 41-foot boat’s three bladed stainless steel propellers sliced her leg and ankle…

Miami Developer Maimed Swimmer In Yachting Accident, Lawsuit Says

A Miami woman alleges that shopping center developer Irwin Elliott Tauber ran over her with his yacht in Miami’s Biscayne Bay in April, causing serious injury to her extremities. He also allegedly refused to render first aid. Tauber is the CEO of Taubco, which owns Causeway Square, an LA Fitness-anchored mixed-use building at the corner of Biscayne Boulevard…

Here are the most active players in the loan workouts space

Barneys’ former space on Madison Avenue was hanging by a thread. A $76 million balance on the building’s debt, which Ashkenazy Acquisition took out in 2010, was set to mature in July. And after Barneys filed for bankruptcy and shut down all of its stores this February, Ashkenazy was forced to tap the retailer’s letter of credit to make debt service payments…

Homestead Park of Commerce Sold for $35M to Copart USA

October 2020 – ComReal is proud to announce the sale of 117 acres within The Homestead Park of Commerce in South Dade and welcome Copart USA to the City of Homestead! The sales price was $34,746,716. Copart was represented by the ComReal team including Ed Redlich, Ron Redlich, Chris Spear, Edison Vasquez, Mort Fetterolf and Patrick McBride. The seller…

When the music stops: Guitar Center could file for bankruptcy

The music could stop at Guitar Center in the near future. The retailer is preparing for bankruptcy after missing a $45 million interest payment on its debt, the New York Times reported. The company has reached out to creditors to explore a plan where it could emerge from bankruptcy in 2021. The possibility of bankruptcy comes after Moody’s and S&P downgraded…

Does taxing the wealthy really drive them away?

This year’s spring housing market came a couple of months later than usual to the leafy suburbs of New Jersey. But it was worth the wait. Michele Kolsky-Assatly, a veteran agent with Coldwell Banker focused on Bergen County’s luxury market, has been busier than ever with the exodus of families from New York City. “They never want to be locked up in a high…

Macken wins approval for North Miami Beach townhomes

Macken Companies Principal Alan Macken and a rendering of the project North Miami Beach-based developer Macken Companies received site plan approval for a waterfront townhome community in the city’s Eastern Shores neighborhood. The company hopes to break ground on the 10-unit Koya Bay, along the Intracoastal Waterway at 4098 Northeast 167th…

Abandoned malls get new life as senior housing

As more malls and shopping centers close or see their anchor tenants fall into bankruptcy, they may be repurposed for a new use: senior housing. George and Pat Ritzinger are among the early beneficiaries of the trend: The couple moved to Folkestone, a retirement community in Wayzata, Minnesota, developed on land that formerly housed a shopping mall built…

Blackstone makes $1.2B deal with Brookfield for Simply Self Storage

Blackstone Group is buying Simply Self Storage from Brookfield Asset Management for about $1.2 billion, Bloomberg reported. Brookfield bought the storage company in 2016 and has more than doubled its footprint; it now has more than 8 million square feet of space across the U.S. It started seeking buyers for the company earlier this year. With this deal……

Jules Trump talks luxury towers and assembling in Sunny Isles Beach in TRD’s Coffee Talks

In excess-loving South Florida, there’s always room for more — more mansions on the waterfront, more luxury penthouses, and more Trump. TRD‘s latest episode of Coffee Talk includes just one Trump. Not Donald, not Eric or Don Jr., but one whose name South Florida industry experts know just as well — South African-born developer Jules Trump. Though he…

The metamorphosis of the metropolis

After years of sparring over its highest and best use, the fate of 5 World Trade Center was left to a competition. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. last year announced what was effectively a truce: The agencies would consider both residential and commercial visions for the site. Among them were…

Covid pummeled shopping centers, but their parking lots are thriving

While many traditional streams of income for landlords have slowed or dried up due to the pandemic, one has proven to be a surprising earner: parking lots. Landlords of large parking lots and garages have been renting out those spaces for a variety of activities, including open-air retail, job fairs, polling stations and drive-through COVID-19 testing, the Wall Street…

Kendall Corners Florida Retail Shopping Center Gets a New Tenant, Aldi

Key Points Regarding the New Aldi Lease in Kendall Corners MMG acquired the Kendall Corners retail center in March 2017.  The Kendall Corners’ original business plan included replacing Ashley Furniture with a grocer upon their lease expiration in 2020, as a means to incorporate more grocery-anchored retail centers to the portfolio. Ashley Furniture…

Active South Florida Lender Bank OZK’s lending up in third quarter

New York’s commercial real estate market has been pummeled by the pandemic, but one of its biggest condo construction lenders reported almost no write-downs in the third quarter. On its earnings call Friday, Arkansas-based Bank OZK reported that its net charge-off rate, or ratio of loans written-down to total loans originated, was 0.09 percent. That is well……

Do over: North Miami Beach to re-vote on Dezer’s plan to redevelop Intracoastal Mall

Dezer Development will return to the North Miami Beach commission for a re-vote on two ordinances tied to the contentious redevelopment of the Intracoastal Mall, despite securing approval earlier this week. In the Zoom commission meeting on Tuesday that ended after 2 a.m., two commissioners were absent for the vote. Still, the two ordinances passed…

MG3 buys former Miami Herald printing facility for $12M

Miguel Alcivar, Wayne Ramoski, Gian Rodriguez, Dominic Montazemi and Skylar Stein of Cushman & Wakefield MG3 Group, an Aventura-based private real estate company, bought the former Miami Herald printing facility in Doral for $11.6 million, a $2.3 million loss from its previous sale in 2016. Records… the three-story warehouse at 3500 Northwest 89th Court.

Eight stats tell the tale of Adam Neumann’s rise, fall, and return

Alfred CEO Marcela Sapone and Adam Neumann Adam Neumann is back. In his first venture since leaving WeWork last year, the eccentric and brash Israeli entrepreneur is investing $30 million in Alfred, a “future of living” startup that provides apartment services such as dog walking, maintenance and rent processing, according to Bloomberg. Neumann’s family…

At final presidential debate, talk of Opportunity Zones and “little tiny windows”

At Thursday’s presidential debate, there was less interrupting and more real-estate related discussion. The event marked the final faceoff between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden before Election Day. Housing was only briefly acknowledged in the first debate, which devolved into more of a shouting match than polite discourse.

Gap Inc. will close 350 stores and exit malls entirely

Another big retailer is leaving struggling malls behind. Gap Inc. announced Thursday that it will close 350 of its stores —220 of its namesake Gap shops, and 130 Banana Republic outposts — by early 2024, ABC News reported. Eighty percent of its remaining stores will be in off-mall locations, according to ABC News. “We’ve been overly reliant on low-productivity…

South Florida industrial market shows signs of weakness in Q3

South Florida’s industrial market — believed to be resilient to coronavirus as demand for distribution space and cold storage grows with online shopping — did show some signs of weakness in the third quarter, according to a newly released report. In Palm Beach County, 350,000 square feet of industrial space was…

Sold! Online auto auctioneer pays $35M for Homestead land

Going … going … gone. A publicly traded provider of online car auctions paid $34.75 million for 117 acres of land in the Homestead Park of Commerce. Copart USA, founded in 1982 and based in Dallas, bought the land at Southeast 36th Avenue and Southwest 336th Street. The site includes a 32,453-square-foot Class A distribution warehouse, according to a…

Rent collections in market-rate apartments stagnate in October

Rental payments for market-rate apartments are holding steady from September, but down slightly from last year. The National Multifamily Housing Council’s monthly payment tracker, which collects data on collections in 11.4 million market-rate units, found that 90.6 percent of those households paid some rent by Oct. 20. In 2019, about…

Miami board approves plans for Related, Crescent Heights towers and rejects Melo’s proposal

A city of Miami board rejected plans for Melo Group’s latest downtown Miami project, and approved plans for separate projects from Crescent Heights and the Related Group. On Wednesday, the Miami Urban Development Board unanimously approved Crescent Heights’ 38-story tower at 2900 Biscayne Boulevard and a 37-story mixed-use project at…

Sunny Isles mayor sells Hialeah warehouse for $13M

A company tied to the mayor of Sunny Isles Beach and a fellow South Florida real estate investor sold a 160,000-square-foot warehouse in Hialeah for $13.1 million. George “Bud” Scholl, elected mayor in 2014 and re-elected in 2018, and investor Steven M. Rhodes sold the industrial building at 1101 East 33rd Street, The Real Deal has learned. EverWest Real Estate…

Logistics Company Relocates. Inks New 93,000-SF Lease Deal

IFS Neutral Maritime, a consolidation, cargo and logistic company, inked a 7-year lease deal for 93,320 square feet at Turnpike Commerce Center (TCC) located at 1350-1400 NW 121st Avenue in Doral, with plans to occupy the building in its entirety in January 1, 2021. The deal closed October 7. Hector Catano, president of Cornerstone International Realty, represented the…

Midtown Capital Partners buys Miramar office center for $23M

A Miami real estate investment and asset management firm bought the Miramar headquarters of an information technology company for $22.6 million. Records show Midtown Capital Partners bought the Miramar Tech Center at 2900 Monarch Lakes Boulevard. A company affiliated with United Data Technologies, or UDT…

South Florida Q3 office rents hit record high, despite higher vacancies

Despite record high office vacancies across South Florida, average asking rates hit new highs Despite record office vacancy rates across South Florida, average asking rents hit new highs in the third quarter, according to a newly released report. Miami-Dade had the highest average asking rate, at $41.68 per square foot, according to the report from Colliers International…

Miami Commercial Real Estate Sales to List Price Ratio Trails Off in September to Five Year Low ~ September 2020 MLS

The sales to list price ratio as reported by the Miami MLS for improved commercial property in Miami-Dade County from $1 million to $10 million dipped in September. September’s recorded ratio of 86.3% is the lowest level recorded since February 2015’s 84.9% number. This follows a dip two months prior that, though a slightly better number was itself then the…

Here’s What Could Happen To The EB-5 Program In A New Administration

The EB-5 immigrant investor program, which has been used to fund major development projects throughout the United States, has been limping along for the past few years, and some have even predicted its demise after rules were tightened last summer. How might the program, which awards U.S. green cards and visas to foreigners who put a minimum of $900K into…

Sunny Isles mayor sells Hialeah warehouse for $13 million

A company tied to the mayor of Sunny Isles Beach and a fellow South Florida real estate investor sold a 160,000-square-foot warehouse in Hialeah for $13.1 million. George “Bud” Scholl, elected mayor in 2014 and re-elected in 2018, and investor Steven M. Rhodes sold the industrial building at 1101 East 33rd Street, The Real Deal has learned. EverWest Real Estate…

Honeywell warehouse in Medley sells for $8M

South Florida real estate investor Leo Ghitis sold a warehouse near Medley for $7.5 million. Ghitis sold the nearly 50,000-square-foot building at 9315 Northwest 112 Avenue on 3 acres of land inside Flagler Station Industrial Park, according to records. The price equates to about $152 a square foot. The buyers are entities that share an address with Midtown Capital…

Miami Beach based Starwood scores $265M refi for portfolio of InTown, Uptown hotels

Starwood Capital Group secured $265 million in refinancing for a portfolio of 58 extended-stay and midscale hotels nationwide, representing a fraction of all the hotels it owns and operates. Miami Beach-based Starwood hopes to execute the first lien mortgage about Oct. 28, according to a report from Kroll Bond Rating Agency. Starwood will use the funds to pay off existing…

Seritage sells Hialeah shopping center for $21M

Seritage sold a 108,000-square-foot shopping center formerly anchored by Kmart in Hialeah for $21 million. A Daytona Beach-based publicly traded real estate company, CTO Realty Growth, bought the shopping center at 1460 West 49th Street, records show. The company changed its name from Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co. to CTO in May. The sale equates to $194 psf…

Rental project in MiMo District launches leasing

The developer of the American Legion property in Miami’s MiMo District launched leasing of the first phase and plans to break ground on the second phase next year. Private equity firm Asia Capital Real Estate, also known as ACRE, and QuadReal Property Group, the real estate investment arm of the British Columbia public employees’ pension, completed the first phase…

In “Billion Dollar Loser,” WeWork’s “epic rise” and Adam Neumann’s quiet enablers

Real estate executives had their doubts about WeWork, but many weren’t willing to risk missing out on its success. They and others who kept their criticism to themselves helped enable and then felled the co-working giant once it became clear that its crash would be just as extraordinary as its ascent. “They couldn’t explain WeWork’s valuation, but they were fearful…

10,566 SF Office Sublease Negoitated at Brickell City Centre

Cresa has negotiated a 10,566-square-foot office sublease for Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP (Pillsbury) in Miami’s Brickell City Centre. Pillsbury, which focuses on the technology and media, energy, financial services, and real estate and construction sectors, has occupied the space at 600 Brickell Ave. since 2017 and will now lease the space until at least…

Dezer’s mega development project gets key approval

A rendering of the project with developer Gil Dezer Dezer Development’s plan to redevelop the Intracoastal Mall property into a massive mixed-use project cleared another hurdle. North Miami Beach commissioners approved ordinances for the complex on second reading in a 3 to 2 vote early Wednesday morning. Two commissioners were not present for the…

Edgewater-Midtown tower residences win Miami’s backing

A mixed-use residential development is being proposed for the area where Edgewater meets Midtown in the City of Miami, and not far from Wynwood. Called 27 Edgewater, the planned 18-story building would rise at 2728 NE Second Ave. and be home to 108 dwellings. The project by developer 908 Group Holdings LLC was recently reviewed by the city’s…

Rents fall in cities around the world

Across the country, rents are tumbling. Sales have surged in the New York suburbs, and prices with them. But Manhattan apartments are the cheapest they’ve been since 2013. The number of listings have tripled from a year ago while the median rent has dropped 11 percent, according to Bloomberg. Expensive cities have taken the biggest hit. In San Francisco, the median…

Jorge Pérez steps down as president of Related Group, handing title to son Jon Paul

Jon Paul Pérez was named president of the Related Group, taking over from his father, Jorge Pérez. Jorge, who founded the Miami-based real estate giant in 1979, will stay on as chairman and CEO when Jon Paul takes over in November, according to a release. Billionaire developer Jorge Pérez, known as the Miami condo king, has spoken about his succession plan in the past.

Blackstone Move Solidifies Miami Mayor’s Vision For A Global City

The dream of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez to have the city turn into a global destination for talent and investment is coming to fruition. Blackstone, a private equity investment firm, has set its sights on opening a Miami outpost as the nation’s largest investment managers continue to migrate to South Florida. Its plans surfaced as the city is in…

PortMiami dredging may rest on economic future of cruise lines

PortMiami continues to plan for more dredging, pandemic or not. As the coronavirus has plagued both Miami and the rest of the nation, there has been an increased focus on cruise ship travel and economic recovery.  Last year, Miami-Dade County commissioners authorized a three-year study. Now, after about a year and a half, US Army Corps of Engineers project…

Things To Consider When Leasing To A Medical Marijuana Dispensary

Some essential CRE steps when leasing to an essential business At the height of lockdowns and quarantines, it quickly became apparent that what was considered essential expanded far beyond first responders and hospital staff. Truck drivers working long shifts to get goods to supermarkets, and the employees stocking shelves with those products quickly rose to…

Can Proposed Seawalls Protect Miami From Storm Surges?

The Magic City could see walls become a permanent part of the downtown area if an Army Corps of Engineers plan comes to fruition Downtown Miami has one of the planet’s most spectacular coastlines, featuring buildings that seemingly jet from the ocean as you approach from the air or water.  This beautiful location comes with…

Bus Rapid Transit has inside track in East-West Corridor

After nearly three decades of studies, local transportation decision-makers are set – again – to choose a mass transit upgrade for a 14-mile commuting route linking West Miami-Dade to Miami International Airport and downtown Miami. Today (10/22), the Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization Governing Board is to vote on a preferred transit mode for…

Sandor Scher: Set to bring hotel, condos, retail to Beach’s Ocean Terrace

For almost two decades, Sandor Scher’s Claro Development has advised on more than 100 projects in over 60 cities, adding nearly 2,500 hotel rooms in South Florida and, according to firm figures, delivering more than $750 million of hospitality, commercial and historic restoration development. His entrée into real estate came through a restaurant startup that over 6½…

Miami-Dade approves interim contract for monorail to Miami Beach

A rendering of the monorail Plans for a monorail between the city of Miami and Miami Beach took a step forward on Tuesday. In spite of calls for a deferral from Miami Beach, the Miami-Dade County Commission approved a contract of up to $14 million with Genting Group and Meridiam Infrastructure North America Corp. to study the feasibility of building…

The REInterview: Reeves Wiedeman on the manic rise and fall of Adam Neumann and WeWork

Dream no small dreams, for they have no power to move the hearts of men — or venture capitalists. Adam Neumann, the co-founder and former CEO of WeWork, certainly wasn’t guilty of small dreams. From being a broke émigré living rent-free in his sister’s apartment to building one of New York’s largest real estate companies to becoming the head of one of the…

Related, Crescent Heights and Melo Group seek approval for Miami projects

The Related Group, Crescent Heights and the Melo Group are seeking approval from the Miami Urban Development Review Board for projects in downtown Miami and Edgewater. Related and its partner, ROVR Development, led by Oscar Rodriguez and Ricardo Vadia, are proposing The District at 225 North Miami Avenue in downtown Miami. The 37-story…

Mezz lender forecloses on Ocean Drive hotel in South Beach

The pandemic brought especially bad timing for the owner of a South Beach hotel, which purchased it last year, embarked on a multimillion-dollar renovation, and ended up losing its investment. Leste Group and its partner, Moto Capital Group, last month foreclosed on the newly renovated Lord Balfour Hotel at 350 Ocean Drive, The Real Deal has learned. The,,,

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick cooks up a real estate empire

Uber co-founder and ex-CEO Travis Kalanick has quietly amassed a real estate empire over the past two years. Companies tied to Kalanick’s CloudKitchens, a startup that rents available space to food delivery businesses, have snapped up more than 40 properties across the country for more than $130 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. Kalanick’s…

AMC faces serious cash crunch despite theaters reopening

Movie theaters are reopening across the country, but that may not be enough to save some of the biggest cinema operators. AMC Entertainment Holdings, one of the world’s largest movie theater operators, said it could run out of cash by the end of the year if it can’t find additional sources of liquidity, Reuters reported. The company said…

Buying distressed debt to get the underlying property – a litigation due diligence checklist

It’s beyond the scope of this blog to predict where the commercial real estate market is heading, but there are those who have predicted a downturn. If that turns out to be right, there may be more loans than usual going into default. If you are considering buying a commercial note that is in default because you ultimately want to foreclose to buy the property…

New York’s CRE woes could spread nationwide: investors

Investors are betting that trouble in New York City’s commercial real estate market will spread nationwide. Prices for debt backed by hotels, restaurants and retail in New York City — among the hardest-hit sectors as the pandemic emptied out tourist destinations this year — have fallen and new loans have slowed…

Here’s what tenants are paying at Shops at Merrick Park

Brian Kingston and Merrick Park Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus may be closing stores across the country amid the pandemic, but at the Shops at Merrick Park in Coral Gables, the retailers appear to be in for the long haul. Brookfield Property REIT owns the roughly 850,000-square-foot property at 358 San Lorenzo Avenue, which consists of a three-story open-air…

Family foundation pays $5M for land in Miami Shores, plans private Jewish school

Jamie Rose Maniscalco and Daniel Ades with the property A family foundation paid $5.3 mil… The Ades Family Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Aventura-based Kawa Capital Management’s managing partner and chief investment officer Daniel Ades, bought the assemblage at 855, 975 and 995 Northwest 95th Street and at 900, 910 and 920 Northwest 96th Street.

Building up: Homebuilder confidence hits new highs

Homebuilders are feeling record levels of optimism, according to a new report. The National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index reached 85 in October, seasonally adjusted, the highest reading in the monthly metric’s 35-year history. After experiencing a sharp decline in the spring, the NAHB index has been steadily rising — and…

How Does the Pandemic Recession Stack Up against the Great Depression?

Many observers have been comparing the COVID-19-induced recession with the Great Depression. An Economic Synopses essay published in August examined some key economic indicators during these contractions to consider their severity and duration. Group Vice President and Deputy Director of Research David Wheelock explained that the Great Depression…

Aventura office complex Optima inks new leases

Four companies signed leases for a total of 36,000 square feet at Optima, a three-building office complex in Aventura, including the first tenant of the complex’s 28-story tower that is still under construction. Blanca Commercial Real Estate, which brokered the deals, declined to disclose lease terms for space at the complex at 21500 Biscayne Boulevard.

Ransom Everglades sues developer Caroline Weiss over backyard boat dock

A pop-up private marina behind a commercial developer’s home in Coconut Grove is disrupting Ransom Everglades’ aquatic learning experiences, according to a recently filed lawsuit. The private school is suing Caroline Weiss, CEO of the Weiss Group of Companies, in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, in an attempt to stop her from allowing private boats from docking along…

State Of South Florida Commercial Real Estate Discussed

Paul Marko was recently appointed as principal of the South Florida Avison Young team, and he applied his 30 years of experience in office tenant representation, buyer broker services and portfolio administration to answer some questions about the South Florida and national commercial real estate markets.

“There’s a lot of money to be made”: IRS targets foreign real estate investors

The Internal Revenue Service is going after foreign real estate investors as part of a broader sweep to collect revenues amid the pandemic.  In the past month, the Internal Revenue Service has announced two new audit campaigns targeting overseas investors who own or hold interests in U.S. property. The campaigns focus on foreign investors selling their interests…

Fontainebleau Miami Beach’s $1B loan exits special servicing

Miami-Dade County’s largest resort is no longer in special servicing. The $975 million commercial mortgage-backed securities loan for Jeffrey Soffer’s Fontainebleau Miami Beach returned to the master servicer on Sept. 23 following successful negotiations with lenders, according to Trepp data updated this week. The loan was transferred to the special servicer…

Unibail-Rodamco sues Express over $30 million in missed rent

Act of God? Mall operator Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield said its lease agreements with Express cover such events, and still require the retailer to pay the rent. Now Unibail is suing Express, saying the retailer owes $30 million in skipped rent across 27 locations throughout the U.S. Fourteen of those stores are in malls in California, according to the suit, filed in Los…

Mast Capital wins initial approval for shorter Mid-Miami Beach condo project

Developer Camilo Miguel Jr. won initial approval for a shorter, 85-foot tall version of his planned 4000 Alton Road condo project in mid-Miami Beach. The Miami Beach City Commission on Wednesday passed on first reading three ordinances that will enable Miguel’s Mast Capital to build an 85-foot tall building with as many as 216 units. The proposal will be heard once…

Miami Beach approves zoning change allowing for Aman tower

Miami Beach commissioners approved a zoning change that would allow billionaire developers Vlad Doronin and Len Blavatnik to build their Aman-branded tower. Commissioners Steven Meiner and Micky Steinberg voted against the Faena district overlay ordinance on second reading, which will allow the developers to build a 250-foot tall tower, up from the previously…

Miami Beach approves zoning change allowing for Aman tower

Miami Beach commissioners approved a zoning change that would allow billionaire developers Vlad Doronin and Len Blavatnik to build their Aman-branded tower. Commissioners Steven Meiner and Micky Steinberg voted against the Faena district overlay ordinance on second reading, which will allow the developers to build a 250-foot tall tower, up from the previously…

Miami-Dade approves three affordable housing redevelopment projects for south Dade

Miami-Dade County approved short-term leases that will enable three developers — the Related Group, Centennial Management Corp. and Procida Development Group — to redevelop county-owned affordable housing projects in south Miami-Dade. Approving short-term, 11-month leases, during a commission meeting on Tuesday, was the first step…

Miami Beach raises red flags over county’s monorail push

Miami-Dade County officials may soon take the next step toward developing a “mass-transit solution” in Miami Beach, but city administrators have some concerns.  According to a memo to be addressed by Miami Beach commissioners today (10/15), county commissioners will consider on Oct. 20 legislation that would approve a two-step interim agreement with a…

Residents Fight Developer’s Takeover Of Miami Beach Marina, Monty’s Raw Bar

Despite Miami Beach’s reputation for sun, sand and cocktails, there’s hardly any place in the city where visitors can enjoy a waterfront view and a single-digit-priced drink, because most of its 7.69 square miles have been taken over by upscale restaurants and hotels or private, luxury condos. At Monty’s Raw Bar, though, one can still sit under a thatched roof and get a…

How Wynwood Became ‘Absolutely The Coolest Neighborhood In The Country’

Jessica Goldman Srebnick, CEO of Goldman Properties, remembered how her developer father, the late Tony Goldman, led the revitalization of New York’s SoHo in the 1970s, Miami Beach in the 1990s and the Center City District of Philadelphia. “And we came to this little wonderful neighborhood called Wynwood in 2005,” she said during a Bisnow Wynwood webinar…

Federal Realty Defaults On $61 Million Loan Backed By Miami’s Shops At Sunset Place

Federal Realty Investment Trust is in default on a $61M mortgage backed by an outdoor mall in South Miami. The publicly traded real estate investment trust owns The Shops at Sunset Place in a joint venture, which last year announced a major redevelopment plan for the property, which has struggled with vacancies for years. This year, the coronavirus pandemic…

Coral Rock Scores $54 Million Loan for Hialeah Project

Coral Rock Development Group has secured $53.5 million in construction financing for the residential segment of Pura Vida Hialeah, a nine-acre mixed-use project in Hialeah, Fla. Principal Real Estate Investors acted as the lender. The residential development will comprise three eight-story towers offering a total of 260 units, ranging from studio to three-bedroom…

Chart: Another Strong Month for Miami-Dade Commercial Real Estate Sales ~ September 2020 MLS

Embedded above is the chart for the trailing two years, specifically the period from October 2018 to September 2020, of closed sales of Miami-Dade commercial property, both improved commercial property (with buildings) and vacant commercial land, recorded in the Miami MLS. September 2020 was, again, a strong month, only a bit off from sales in August, which had…

The Slow Drip Folly of Holding Highest and Best Use Maxed Out Vacant Land

Save me from the pain of witnessing foregone monetization. A vacant land owner, where the property that has seemingly topped out its HABU (highest and best use) potential, is forgoing potential income from reinvestment of potential sales proceeds (of the vacant land) for no apparent benefit. In other words, if HABU is topped out, there is not a higher value HABU to…

Last Chance for Miami Wilds Water Park?

Next week is the last chance for the current iteration of the Miami-Dade County Commission to vote on the controversial Miami Wilds water park — but the development is receiving more and more opposition from conservationists and politicians. The nonprofit Bat Conservation International recently released the results of a 2019 ecological survey that…

Industrial Development Site In Doral Sells For Record Price

Brokers negotiated the sale of Doral Center Development Land, a pristine parcel in highly sought-after Doral, Florida, located at 10751 Northwest 25th Street. The broker acting as exclusive representative sold the land, which totals 162,325 square feet (3.72 acres), for $6,000,000 or $37 per square foot. The Seller, REMS Group, and its principals are family friends of;;;

We Company reverts name back to WeWork

In a throwback to a more innocent time — before anyone knew Adam Neumann packed a cereal box full of marijuana onto his private jet — the WeCompany is changing its name back to WeWork. The move is an attempt to return the company to its office-sharing roots, according to an internal memo cited by Reuters. “We want to be strategic. We want to be innovative.

Hudson’s Bay, Simon Property Group hit with $846M foreclosure lawsuit

Wilmington Trust is suing a joint venture between Simon Property Group and Hudson’s Bay Company for allegedly failing to make mortgage payments. Ten Saks Fifth Avenue and 24 Lord & Taylor locations are named in the lawsuit, which was filed earlier this month in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court, the South Florida Business Journal reported. The lawsuit…

Deauville Beach Resort loses court battle tied to $400K judgment

The Deauville Beach Resort’s (6701 Collins Ave)management company and a Miami attorney engaged in a “sham” court petition to transfer assets so the firm could avoid paying a six-figure judgment, according to a recent ruling by Miami-Dade Judge Michael Hanzman. Hanzman dismissed a 2018 petition filed by lawyer Felix Caceres seeking an assignment for the…

New South Beach image and rules on drawing board

“Anything goes” might have once been a slogan for South Beach promoters, but Miami Beach commissioners agree that the area known as the Mixed Use Entertainment District needs a new image – and some ground rules.  Hawking, lewd behavior, “quality of life” related offenses, misuse of vehicles such as scooters and loud noise are some of the issues they…

Highways nightmare stalls massive NW Miami-Dade American Dream Mall

Delays in the completion of freeway interchanges that will provide access to American Dream Miami, a mammoth entertainment and retail complex to rise in Northwest Miami-Dade, could push back the opening for about a year. “Our development agreement stipulates that the interchanges have to be in place before we can open, so we are tied to that,” said Miguel Diaz…

Quarter-billion dollar cruise industry bailout floated

As the US cruise industry enters its seventh month of inactivity due to Covid-19, Miami-Dade is eyeing a plan that could forgive more than a quarter-billion dollars that cruise lines would otherwise have paid PortMiami. A worst-case scenario in which cruise lines remain docked for two-plus years would see the port lose $271.5 million and be forced to…

Casino Giant Genting’s massive transit deal stalls bus terminal

Plans for a temporary bus terminal that would unlock a 3½-year-old joint development project are still on hold – and could possibly be canceled – as Miami-Dade considers a massive transit offering from Malaysian casino giant Genting. The makeshift station was to have served Metrobus riders while Genting subsidiary Resorts World Miami developed a new Omni…

Miami speeds to resolve Virginia Key Marina bid battle

With new players in the mix, the Miami City Commission has called for a special meeting next month to discuss the future of Virginia Key Marina. At last week’s virtual meeting, commissioners voted to hold a special meeting Nov. 16 to discuss, and potentially act on, the marina’s ongoing solicitation dispute.  The city administration asked for the commission to defer the…

Downtown Miami observation wheel prepares to roll

While plans were originally to have its grand opening back in March, downtown Miami’s observation wheel will soon be up and running for Bayside Marketplace visitors, operators say. Towering 176 feet over downtown’s skyline, the new observation wheel might open at the end of this month, said Charlene Leavitt of Skyviews Miami, the tourist attraction…

Midtown Miami development site in foreclosure hits the market

3601 North Miami Avenue with Francisco Arocha The developer of the planned Triptych project that straddles the border between Midtown Miami and the Design District is listing the site for sale. HES Group, which is facing foreclosure from its lender, is looking to sell or find a joint venture partner for the 1-acre property at 3601 North Miami Avenue, said Francisco…

Here are the South Florida real estate players who donated to candidates in 2020

As the presidential election nears, The Real Deal examined top South Florida real estate players’ political donations this year, and found they largely skewed in one direction. A number of developers supported Republican candidates and causes, including Craig Robins, Stuart Miller and Russell Galbut. Related Group developer Jorge Pérez and real…

Spirit Halloween reawakens to cannibalize stores

Autumn is a time for falling leaves, pumpkin pie and Spirit Halloween reappearing to take up unoccupied space in strip malls and commercial corridors. This year, even as trick-or-treating becomes an unknown, there are more Spirit Halloween locations to go around. The company has opened more than 1,400 storefronts nationwide, an increase from last year,

Investors heat up cold storage market

Investors are increasingly turning to the cold storage sector, which showed surprising resilience through the first few months of the pandemic. Lineage Logistics, the world’s largest landlord of temperature-controlled storage, pulled in $1.6 billion in a fundraising round that ended last month, according to the Wall Street Journal. Americold Realty Trust, the only…

Dollar General launches new brand targeting affluent customers

Dollar General is launching a new brand aimed at higher-income earners — and keeping the focus away from the “dollar” in its name. The new brand, Popshelf, will still sell inexpensive products in its stores, with most items priced at $5 or less, the Wall Street Journal reported. But the stores will carry fewer Dollar General staples (like food) and more nonconsumable…

Fewer than half of holiday shoppers will hit the mall this year

In a typical year, the holidays are peak season for malls — but this isn’t a typical year, and shopping centers that have already been hurt by the pandemic will continue to feel the economic crunch in the leadup to the holiday shopping season. Only 45 percent of shoppers plan to visit a mall to do some or all of their holiday shopping, down from 64 percent last year…

Target-anchored mixed-use project planned for North Beach advances

Aria Mehrabi and renderings of the projects Part of Aria Mehrabi’s planned development for North Beach got the OK to move onto permitting this week. And Miami Beach officials will review more of his plans in November. The Miami Beach Design Review Board on Tuesday gave the green light to the planned 12-story tower with 170 residential units anchored by a 25,000…

Now Microsoft is joining work from home forever club

Microsoft is joining the ranks of Facebook, Twitter, Zillow and other companies that have developed permanent work from home options for their employees. The tech giant unveiled “hybrid workplace” guidance that permits employees to work from home for less than 50 percent of their working week, or receive manager approval for permanent remote…

Southland Mall’s troubled $65M CMBS loan for sale

A $65 million CMBS loan on Southland Mall in Cutler Bay is being shopped, after its former owner defaulted on it earlier this year. JLL is marketing the loan, which is tied to the 990,000-square-foot indoor mall at 20505 South Dixie Highway. The mall’s former owner, Investcorp, defaulted in April and handed the keys over to its CMBS lenders this summer. The mall is…

How the COVID-19 Economy Impacts Property Improvements & Customized Offices

The changing tenant-improvement landscape due to COVID-19 Before the COVID-19 pandemic, it was common for tenants in “Class A” buildings to ask for significant improvements to office space as a part of their real estate lease. In essence, this practice allows companies to obtain a highly-customized office as part of their agreement.  The owners of…

Retail rent collection has nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels

While national chains still face financial woes, there are some signs of recovery within the retail sector — particularly in categories such as gyms and clothing stores. National retailers paid 86 percent of their September rent, according to the latest Datex Property Solutions report. That’s about 10 percent below what they paid in 2019, but slightly…

Blackstone to open office in South Florida

The Blackstone Group is planning to open an office in South Florida, as the region’s economic boosters work to attract financial and investment firms. The New York-based private equity giant plans to hire about 215 employees, most of whom will be back-office technology workers, according to Bloomberg. The news comes as the Miami-Dade County Commission…

Integra scores approval for waterfront workforce housing project in Florida Keys

Victor Ballestas and Wrecker’s Cay Integra Investments is moving forward with its plans to build Wrecker’s Cay Apartments, the largest workforce housing project to be built in the Florida Keys in more than 50 years. Miami-based Integra, led by developer Victor Ballestas, recently secured approval from Monroe County for the 280-unit development on Stock…

Doral DoubleTree owner sues architect for $4M, alleging design errors

The DoubleTree at 10250 Northwest 19th Street and Larry Beame (Credit: Google Maps) The owner of the 150-room DoubleTree in Doral sued the architect of the hotel, alleging design defects that cost millions of dollars in fixes and delays. Hospitality Doral LLC, which owns the six-story hotel at 10250 Northwest 19th Street in Doral, sued Beame Architectural…

Crust to Expand With Takeaway Concept

Klime and Anita Kovaceski are expanding into the carry-out business. The husband-wife team behind Crust will open a new takeout concept and market they’ve dubbed Crust2go. “We always had the idea for carry-out as a bigger component to Crust in the backburner,” Kovaceski tells New Times. “But COVID-19 has changed the way people eat and do things to the point…

Hollywood Publix with boat dock advances

Hollywood is another step closer to landing a rare Publix grocery store with a boat dock. The Hollywood Planning & Development Board approved plans and modifications for a 30,000-square-foot supermarket at 3100 South Ocean Drive during the board’s meeting Tuesday. The store still needs approval from the city commission. It would be the second Publix with…

Fort Lauderdale developers score $92M bridge loan for rental tower

4 West Las Olas Fort Lauderdale developers Scott Bodenweber and Tom Vogel scored $92 million in bridge financing for a newly completed apartment tower in downtown Fort Lauderdale. Benefit Street Partners Realty Trust, a New York-based mortgage real estate investment trust, provided senior debt of $76 million, while West Palm Beach-based…