Massa Investment pays $11.5M for retail space at Axis Brickell

A company tied to Massa Investment Group just paid $11.5 million for retail space at Axis Brickell in Miami, records show. Lmnr Axis Properties LLC, which is managed by Menin Hospitality’s Keith Menin, sold the 13,724-square-foot property at the ground floor of the condo development. The property at 79 Southwest 12th Street includes the popular Miami taco shop Coyo Taco and Marion Miami…

Sterling Bay Enters Miami With Creative Office Project

Sterling Bay, the Chicago-based developer known for developing urban campuses for companies like Google, McDonald’s, Uber and Tyson Foods in the city’s West Loop and Fulton Market, and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management, have completed the purchase of property at 545 NW 26th Street in Miami’s Wynwood district for $18.9 million. To be called 545wyn…

Real estate firms flocked to Israel in search of cheap debt. Now the market’s turning.

After weeks of declines, defaults, and troubling disclosures, bonds issued by American real estate firms in Israel are falling at unprecedented rates. Over the weekend, the Tel Bond Global, an index which tracks bonds issued by American real estate companies, fell four percent, closing with an average yield in the double-digits Sunday, and falling a further two points on Monday. Some of the bonds…

Joe Martinez: Commissioner puts housing atop list of urgent problems

Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez next year will celebrate 35 years in public service, about half of which he spent rising through the ranks of the county police force while earning more than 70 awards and commendations, including two Gold Medals of Valor and numerous “Officer of the Year” honors. The skills he sharpened in law enforcement, he said, informed his approach to legislation and…

Gables Aventura tops list of South Florida’s biggest multifamily deals in 2018

Gables Residential’s sale of Gables Aventura for $149 million to RREEF marked South Florida’s largest apartment deal in 2018. RREEF, a publicly traded real estate investment trust and an affiliate of Deutsche Bank, paid about $372,500 per unit for the apartment and townhome community at 19920 West Dixie Highway near Aventura, property records show. Rents at the 400-unit complex rents range…

European Embassair to develop 10 acres for luxury jets in Opa-Locka

Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport’s luxury services are due to expand, as Miami-Dade commissioners approved without a word an up to 35-year lease with European aircraft company Embassair to develop 10.2 acres on the airport’s south end. The 11-2 vote last week OK’d Barbara Jordan and Sally Heyman’s request to approve a 30-year development lease and five-year renewal option for Embassair to build…

Plaza Coral Gables advances, adds funding for public

The Plaza Coral Gables’ second amended development agreement passed unanimously in the city commission last week with one small change – a $2.7 million gift from developer Agave Plaza Trustee LLC will have its preferred use be for Art In Public Places instead of the city’s new public safety building. The ordinance reads that any amount of it could go to either one, depending on the commission’s…

Makeover of CocoWalk a step-by-step process

Grass River Property Principal Thomas Roth is seeing his vision of a modern take on CocoWalk rise quarter by quarter. He aims to complete the project come the first quarter of 2020, a plaza that honors the village-like style of the community and better serves those who live in the area. The project is organized into two phases with the ultimate plan to expand the 200,000 square feet to about 250,000…

Overtown hotel planned for business travelers

A developer has plans to build a new hotel in Overtown, catering to the business traveler. Central District Miami Redevelopment Group V, LLC has submitted its proposal to build a Cambria Hotel to the City of Miami. The project was reviewed Dec. 19 by the Urban Development Review Board, which recommended approval by the planning director. The hotel is planned for five parcels at the…

Six-phase mixed-use project for Wynwood gets supportive vote from city

The first phase of what promises to be a six-phase mixed-use project for Wynwood, bringing condos, retail stores and hotel rooms to the rapidly evolving neighborhood, has earned a supportive vote from a City of Miami review board… Wynwood Quarter. The developer is ready to start the first phase on what it refers to as Parcel A, at 115, 127, and 139 NW 28th Street and 145, 157, and 161 NW 28th Street…

The Closing: Alan Faena

Alan Faena is known for his artsy taste, for always wearing white and for creating the Faena District in Miami Beach. Faena was born in Argentina, and his life has taken several turns, including modeling, owning a major fashion company and developing the Faena District in Buenos Aires — all before founding his namesake district in Miami Beach with partner Len Blavatnik. Like some other notable people in…

Golf anyone… anyone? Developers reimagine South Florida’s money-losing courses

The Carolina Club, an 18-hole championship golf course in Margate, has served as a qualifying site for the PGA Honda Classic and is known for its fast, well-manicured greens and contoured fairways. But the semi-private club, built in 1971, isn’t making the cut. Miami-based developer 13th Floor Homes plans to acquire the 140-acre facility and completely transform it into a 350-unit residential…

Inside the house of Lennar

The last decade of Stuart Miller’s 20-year-plus tenure as CEO of Lennar was one for the books. Before announcing his move into the role of executive chairman this past April, the Miami native — and the company — had weathered some significantly stormy weather. Miller led Lennar through one of the worst housing collapses in U.S. history, fended off an alleged extortion scheme by a convicted fraudster…

South Florida’s most head-turning lawsuits of 2018

In 2018, South Florida’s real estate industry saw longtime business partners going through bitter divorces, buyers seeking to get out of luxury condo deals by accusing developers of construction delays and false advertising, foreign governments and investors suing local companies over allegedly fraudulent real estate investments and sizzling disputes over allegedly unpaid six-and-seven-figure…

Pinnacle scores financing for Verbena affordable housing in south Miami-Dade

Pinnacle Housing Group just scored $31.2 million in financing to build Verbena, a new 110-unit transit-oriented affordable housing development in Leisure City’s Modello neighborhood in south Miami-Dade. The project will consist of a six-story building and a five-story building that will rise on 2.4 acres of land right off the Miami-Dade Transit Busway at 28140 South Dixie Highway. Records show Pinnacle…

January panel: How transportation is changing the future of the SoFla real estate market

The arrival of Brightline in Miami this year sparked a lot of chatter in the industry about how the new line would impact real estate in the area. To dig deep into the issue for our readers, The Real Deal will convene a panel of experts at MiamiCentral on Jan. 16. Join TRD along with Miami Worldcenter’s Nitin Motwani, Blanca’s Tere Blanca, Terra Group’s David Martin, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance’s Bob…

South Florida’s largest industrial leases in 2018

The thirst for industrial space led to Nestlé Waters North America’s 257,000-square-foot lease at the Airport North Logistics Park. The company filled an entire building at 8501 Northwest 80th Street, and takes nearly one-third of the space at the 900,000-square-foot, three-building logistics park in northwest Miami-Dade. L&B Realty Advisors, based in Dallas, owns the industrial park. Cushman…

Miami #1, New York City rank among top “dream” retirement destinations: survey

The city that never sleeps may not be a bad place to hang things up. New York City ranked No. 4 among the top destinations where Americans want to live when they retire, according to a new survey. Provision Living, which operates senior-living communities, asked 2,000 people about their dream retirement. Miami, with its warm weather and sunshine, was the No. 1 choice…

Pop-up stores are becoming an increasingly viable option for mall owners

Malls are no longer saying no to pop-up shops. Macerich, a publicly-traded mall landlord that owns more than 50 shopping centers, is now offering leases for 180 days, according to Bloomberg. The company launched a leasing program called BrandBox last month that lets online retailers set up temporary pop-up stores in an attempt to revive a sector hit hard by bankruptcies at former anchor tenants like…

River Landing changes course: adds office, reduces retail

The developers of a $424.8 million mixed-use project on the Miami River are reducing its retail footprint and adding office space. Developer Andy Hellinger, a principal at Urban X Group, and Coralee Penabad are adding 135,000 square feet of office space to River Landing Shops and Residences. The project is under construction and set to open in early 2020 at 1400 Northwest North River Drive.

Baywood sells Quality Inn Miami Airport for $14 million

A Quality Inn-branded hotel in Doral just traded hands for $13.9 million, property records show. A company led by investors Michel and Salvatore Ciniglio and Antonio Pecorelli purchased the three-story Quality Inn Miami Airport at 3959 Northwest 79th Avenue. Records show the buyers financed the deal with a $9.1 million loan from Ocean Bank. Doral Hospitality Inc., which is tied to Baywood Hotels’ Amit…

Triarch Capital expands industrial portfolio with purchase in north Miami-Dade

A Triarch Capital Group affiliate acquired a warehouse in north Miami-Dade County in a off-market deal, adding to its growing industrial portfolio. Aventura-based Triarch’s WH 95 Capital LLC paid $5.85 million for the 61,462-square-foot industrial building. The price for the property, at 17850 State Road 9, penciled out to $95 per square foot. The seller is National Industrial Park, linked to Walston E Helms Jr.

South Florida’s biggest retail sales in 2018

Investment sales in South Florida remain strong despite the latest wave of store closures across the country. The majority of the top deals in 2018 were for new or recently renovated shopping centers in suburban neighborhoods throughout the tri-county region, according to data from brokerages that include Cushman & Wakefield and Colliers International South Florida. “You’re seeing institutional…”

Verzasca scores $26 million construction loan for Aurora Condo in Sunny Isles Beach

Verzasca Group just scored a $25.7 million construction loan for its Aurora condo project in Sunny Isles Beach. The firm secured the loan from New Wave Loans, a nonbank lender based in North Miami Beach, which it will use to build the 17-story, 61-unit condo tower at 17550 Collins Avenue. The project will go vertical in the first quarter of 2019 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2020…

French firm partnering with Spanish hotel group to rebuild historic downtown Miami hotel

Paris-based Immocorp Capital is moving forward with its plans to build a new hotel in downtown Miami and is bringing on a Spanish hotel group as a partner, The Real Deal has learned. Dream Downtown Miami LLC filed a permit for a new 168-key hotel at 139 Northeast First Avenue, according to the city’s building department. The company, led by Immocorp Capital, paid $9.2 million for the seven-story…

Edgardo Defortuna joins Peebles, Stern, Karmely and Karp for Future City 2019

We’re thrilled to announce Fortune International’s Edgardo Defortuna will be joining other top South Florida real estate execs including Don Peebles, Michael Stern, Shahab Karmely and Kobi Karp, among others, at The Real Deal’s Future City 2019 in the Bahamas. Future City is an exclusive two-day opportunity for a group of 200 C-level executives in the fields of development, tech, construction, design and…

South Florida’s CRE Market: What to Expect in 2019

South Florida’s commercial real estate market continues to grow amid population and job gains. “Industrial is by far the best performing sector in South Florida at the moment,” Kenneth Krasnow, Colliers International South Florida’s executive managing director, said in an interview with Commercial Property Executive. He added that the tourism industry, trade and transportation connections, and the…

Video: Real Capital Analytics SVP Jim Costello Discusses Office Market Trends

Jim Costello joins this discussion via Skype to discuss trends to follow in the office market. He discusses how office deal volume is switching from central business district to suburban properties, noting it as due to many of the CBD properties having recently traded, higher yields available in suburban locations, and a generational change of preference of labor force location back to the suburbs. Also…

Fed raises rates for fourth time in 2018 amid signs of market slowdown

The Federal Reserve raised rates on Wednesday for the fourth time this year, citing a strengthening labor market and strong economic activity. The Fed raised the benchmark federal funds rate to between 2.25 percent and 2.5 percent. Rates are now at their highest level since 2008 amid many indicators that the housing market is slowing down. In October, the U.S. Commerce Department reported that…

Major Retail Rising Near Miami Courthouse, Health District

The doctors at Jackson Memorial Hospital and the bailiffs and clerks at the Richard Gerstein Justice Building hopefully like hot dogs, because the vendor slinging wieners outside the courthouse is one of the few lunch options around in the so-called Health District, long a retail desert. Bisnow/Deirdra Funcheon Developers Andrew Hellinger and Coralee Penabad of Urban X survey the construction at River…

Saturation nation? Developers to add 68M sf of office inventory in US next year: report

The U.S. office market could turn to slosh next year, as developers plan to add 68 million square feet of space — the highest increase since 2008. The massive development could lead to downward pressure on the country’s office rent growth, the Wall Street Journal reported. Citing a Cushman & Wakefield report, the Journal reported office rents have been rising across the U.S. for the past several…

Brazilian developer sells site of canceled condo tower near downtown Miami

Brazilian developer Rodolfo Ishak sold the former site of his Krystal Tower, a canceled condo project planned for Overtown, near downtown Miami. Property records show Ishak’s Krystal Investment Solution LLC sold the half-acre property at 530 Northwest First Court for $8.55 million to BH Investments LLC, a company managed by Steve Levy and Rainer Viete of Pompano Beach. The buyer financed…

Is WeWork getting too big for its boots as a landlord?

As WeWork continues to shape the face of office leasing, its recent push into real estate investment is prompting a rebuke from landlords and other industry insiders. “A lot of people originally thought of the shared office-space providers as bringing tenants,” Tony Malkin, CEO of Empire State Realty Trust, told Bloomberg. “But I think now we’ve seen — particularly with WeWork and other providers’ expansion…

South Florida’s largest office leases in 2018: World Fuel Services in Doral; More…

Office tenants are increasingly choosing South Florida, despite the region losing out on the bid for Amazon’s second headquarters. Steven Hurwitz of Colliers International South Florida said that making it onto Amazon’s shortlist underscores a growing interest for office space in South Florida. “The biggest change down here has been the influx of tenants from…

Grading Mayor Frances Suarez’s first year in office

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez joined other mayors in Fabens, Texas, in June to call for the reunification of immigrant families. What a difference some digitizing makes. In early October, Miami’s Planning and Zoning Department finally entered the modern age. With the soft launch of Miami’s Electronic Plans Review System, developers, architects and land use lawyers no longer have to schlep over to the…

Brickell City Centre expansion to help fund public housing

It could be two to three years before work starts on the next phase of sprawling Brickell City Centre, but when it does the City of Miami will get $1 million for affordable housing. Developer Swire Properties agreed to the voluntary public benefits contribution as it seeks approvals to expand its footprint in the neighborhood south of the Miami River. The Miami City Commission on Dec. 13 granted…

Downtown Development Authority to help fund Underdeck under I-395

Directors of Miami’s Downtown Development Authority voted Friday to commit $50,000 to the development of the open space under I-395 as the Underdeck, a linear park that is meant to be a community gathering place. It’s part of the redesign of I-395 that’s will create the Signature Bridge. The money will go toward the hiring of a designer for the space, which The Florida Department of Transportation will…

Lightstone Secures Construction Loan for FL Moxy Hotel

Investor/developer Lightstone has closed $73 million in financing for the latest hotel project, the seven-story, 202-key Moxy South Beach, at 915 Washtington Avenue in Miami Beach. Canyon Partners Real Estate and CapitalSource, a division of Pacific Western Bank, provided the loan. The financing package comprises a $55 million senior loan from CapitalSource and an $18 million preferred equity investment…

Purchase approval of Brickell Bank by Benhamou awaited

It seems the sun may be setting on the purchase approval of Brickell Bank this year. Chairman and CEO Frederick Reinhardt, who expected the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s thumbs-up in 2018, remains hopeful about receiving purchase approval soon and expects the influx of capital to serve the company well. The FDIC is weighing Joseph Benhamou’s offer after a public hearing was held with the Office of…

Extension to State Road 836 could carry 92,000 cars a day

Some designs for the southwestern extension to State Road 836 veered too far west. Other routes flanked properties on Southwest 167th Avenue too tightly. Last week, the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) showed residents its recommended solution for the Kendall Parkway, which it says is just right. The route, labeled “Corridor 2 Alternative 2” at a hearing MDX hosted Dec. 13 at Archbishop Coleman…

Daniel Kodsi: Developing in second-largest US ongoing urban project

Daniel Kodsi is one of the lead developers in the second-largest urban development in the nation: Miami Worldcenter. But before being a prominent Florida developer, as an 11-year-old and the son and nephew of developers he started working in construction to become accustomed to being on-site. With a passion for modern and classical architecture, Mr. Kodsi received his degree from University of…

Dinner Key Marina may go to bid for private operator

Miami has long run Dinner Key Marina in Coconut Grove, the state’s largest wet slip marine facility. In January, city commissioners will consider whether to turn over operation to the private sector, along with city-run Miamarina at Bayside. The move comes at the urging of Joe Carollo, who has been pushing fellow commissioners and administrators to find new revenue sources and beef up current revenue…

International Visitors Fuel South Florida Industrial

In addition to supporting retail real estate such as Sawgrass Mills, the second-largest tourist destination in Florida after Disney World, and American Dream Miami, the largest proposed mall in the U.S., South Florida’s international tourism and consumer buying power are fueling an industrial boom and institutional investors are taking note. The majority of industrial users are seeking space to house…

Sterling Bay pays $19 million for Wynwood site, plans mixed-use project

Sterling Bay just bought a Wynwood site for $18.9 million with plans to build an ambitious 10-story, mixed-use development. The Chicago-based investment firm purchased the 500,000-square-feet property at 537–557 Northwest 26th Street and 530–550 Northwest 27th Street for $37.80 per square foot. Sterling Bay received approval from the Wynwood Design Review Committee for the project…

County wins court appeal on Coconut Grove Playhouse

On December 10, 2018, a three-judge panel of the Circuit Court Appellate Division ruled in favor of Miami-Dade County in a case regarding the historic preservation approval granted to the County to rehabilitate the Coconut Grove Playhouse. In April 2017, the City of Miami’s Historic and Environmental Preservation Board had approved the County’s conceptual design for the Playhouse rehabilitation…

CRE investors see market slowdown amid shrinking borrowing costs vs. yields

Commercial real estate investors are looking at the difference between long-term interest rates and property yields and are seeing a sign the current market cycle is sputtering out. That spread between rates and yields have reached their narrowest margin in more than a decade. For some market pros, that is enough to predict the real estate market is heading for a downturn, according to the Wall Street…

South Florida’s biggest hotel sales in 2018; Hall South Beach; More…

In the most expensive hotel deal in Miami Beach since 2016, Spain-based Grup Peralada purchased the Hall South Beach hotel for $58.2 million. Rockwood Capital sold the 163-key hotel at 1500 Collins Avenue to Grup Peralada for about $357,000 per room. Grup Peralada is owned by the Suqué-Mateu family and has hotels, casino, wine and other businesses under its umbrella. Rockwood, with offices in New…

TSG proposes Cambria hotel in Miami’s Overtown

A company tied to the principals of Miami-based TSG Group is proposing a Cambria hotel in Miami’s Overtown neighborhood. Central District Miami Redevelopment Group V LLC, led by TSG’s Camilo Lopez and Jorge Escobar, is going before the Miami Urban Development Review Board on Wednesday seeking approvals for a 12-story, 192-key hotel at 1313, 1321, 1331 and 1335 Northwest Ninth Avenue…

Judge dismisses lawsuit against Edgardo Defortuna tied to Jade Ocean

A Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge dismissed a lawsuit against Edgardo Defortuna that alleged the developer lied to lenders by claiming a big loss on the Jade Ocean condominium project in Sunny Isles Beach. The judge’s ruling comes on the heels of a five-year legal battle. Capital Building, Florida Beach Investment and Spartan Lending brought the case against Defortuna. The suit claimed that…

Some Opportunity Zone funds — like one from Kushner brothers-backed Cadre — target gentrified areas

The Opportunity Zones program was crafted as a way to incentivize developers to invest in distressed areas. But recent funds set up by Kushner brothers-backed Cadre and other firms show that money could be heading to already gentrified neighborhoods. Cadre, the real estate crowdfunding platform partially owned by Jared and Josh Kushner, told prospective investors it will only target a small portion…

Construction worker dies after fall at Chetrit project in Miami Beach

A construction worker died after he fell at a project site in Miami Beach. A 35-year-old was killed on Monday morning after falling from the third story to the second story of the Chetrit Group’s redevelopment of the Collins Park Hotel, Miami Beach Fire Chief Jorge Linares confirmed. The worker was punctured by rebar, and transferred to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical…

Google to invest $1 billion in a new Manhattan office campus

Google plans to invest $1 billion in a new 1.7 million-square-foot Hudson Square campus. The tech giant will lease Oxford Properties Group’s St. John’s Terminal at 550 Washington Street and take space nearby at Jack Resnick and Sons’ 315 Hudson Street and Trinity Real Estate’s 345 Hudson Street, Google’s parent company Alphabet announced Monday. “With these most recent investments in…

Tenants may have paid more than $30 million in undue rent increases thanks to Trump’s tax schemes: NYT

Victims of the Trump Organization’s alleged tax-dodging scheme most likely paid tens of millions of dollars in undue rent increases over the past two decades, according to the New York Times. In the 1990s, the future president and his siblings set up sham businesses that allowed them to increase rents on rent-regulated apartments, a Times investigation found. But because those increases…

Marsha Soffer sells Chase branch near Little Havana for $7.5M

A company tied to Marsha Soffer just sold a Chase Bank branch near Little Havana for $7.5 million. Soffer’s company, Chandler Chase LH, sold the 30,928-square-foot property at 801 Southwest 27th Avenue for $242 per square foot to Parkwood Plaza Realty Holdings LLC. Marsha Soffer, who is the daughter of Aventura-based developer and Turnberry Associates founder Donald Soffer, bought the…

South Florida’s priciest industrial sales in 2018

Doral HQ, Bob Chapman and SuperValu, SuperValu and Peter Briger of Fortress Investment Group, and Countyline Corporate Park and James B. Connor Industrial properties in South Florida were in hot demand in 2018, with the top five industrial sales totaling $478 million, outperforming last year’s $401.5 million. The increase stems in part from thriving e-commerce…

AVR Realty spends $239M to buy Telemundo’s HQ

Telemundo’s new headquarters just sold for $239.1 million to AVR Realty, an investment and development firm based in Yonkers, New York. Property records show TM Miami FL Landlord LLC sold the 560,000-square-foot headquarters for the Spanish language network, which is owned by Comcast’s NBCUniversal. The seller of the two-building campus at 1 Telemundo Way is controlled by SunTrust Bank’s…

(Over)supply and demand: What Miami’s condo glut could mean for multifamily rents and development

Tour the Panorama Tower overlooking Biscayne Bay, with its “porte cochere,” poolside cafe, wine tasting rooms, pet spa and home theaters, and you might think that you’re sampling Miami’s latest glitzy condominium offering. Rising nearly 900 feet, Florida East Coast Realty’s project is the tallest building in the state. But unlike many of the other towers that dot Brickell, the Hollo family’s development…

Turnberry offices reach 100% occupancy, other news in South Florida leasing

Wells Fargo and IPD Analytics ink leases at Country Club Center in Aventura. Wells Fargo Advisors and IPD Analytics just inked new leases at the Country Club Center office building in Aventura. Wells Fargo renewed its lease and relocated to a 14,095-square-foot space on the ninth floor. The full-floor office layout includes balconies. IPD Analytics is moving into Wells Fargo’s previous space. The company…

Edgardo Defortuna defends in three lawsuits over two of his condo developments

Developer Edgardo Defortuna faces three lawsuits alleging he cheated small sources of project financing and advanced a condo development by blocking the sale of an adjacent property. Unless Defortuna settles first, a Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge will decide on Monday whether to order an immediate trial in a case brought by three plaintiffs. Capital Building, Florida Beach Investment and Spartan…

Miami church faces $7.1 million property tax bill for leasing space to a for-profit school

The First Presbyterian Church of Miami faces a $7.1 million tax bill because the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser claims the church forfeited its religious exemption by leasing part of its property to a for-profit school. Attorneys for First Presbyterian Church filed two lawsuits alleging the county property appraiser has challenged the church’s religious exemption from property tax because of the high…

Company behind Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior to buy luxury hotel group

Paris-based LVMH, a luxury products company that owns the Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior fashion labels, agreed to acquire London-based Belmond and its portfolio of high-end hotels. The deal reflects a belief at LVMH that “the future of luxury is in luxury goods and luxury experiences,” Jean-Jacques Guiony, the finance chief of LVMH, told stock analysts during a conference call. LVMH, which acquired…

Toll Brothers pays $19 million for site to build luxury student housing near FIU

Global City Development sold a site near Florida International University to Toll Brothers, where both companies are planning to partner on building luxury student housing. The homebuilder paid $19 million for the 1.72-acre property next to the former University Bridge Residences site. Global City CEO Brian Pearl said his firm will stay on as a co-developer. The nearly 400,000-square-foot project calls for…

Melo scores $142M refi for Square Station apartments

Melo Group just closed on a $142 million refinance for apartments in Miami’s Arts & Entertainment District. Freddie Mac is providing the 10-year, fixed-rate loan. Berkadia’s Miami acted as the seller servicer, selling the mortgage to Freddie Mac, according to a press release. Peter Mekras of Aztec Group arranged the financing, which is interest-only during the term of the loan. Melo completed Square Station…

Blue Lagoon could get six new buildings, including two hotels

A hotel and residential project that could transform the landscape at Blue Lagoon near Miami International Airport got an initial seal of approval, despite objections from a neighboring condo association. At a Miami planning and zoning hearing on Thursday, city commissioners approved on first reading a zoning change that would allow the Weiss Group to develop six buildings that would house…

Miami commission gives preliminary nod to Brickell City Centre expansion

Brickell City Centre won the initial green light to expand its footprint, creating two new mixed-use towers within a more than 100,000-square-foot annex to the $1.05 billion project. The Miami City Commission on Thursday approved on first reading an amendment to Brickell City Centre’s special area plan that adds 15 properties owned by Colombian businessman Carlos Mattos, who is partnering with…

L. Milton scores $18M construction loan for apartments near Magic City Casino

An affiliate of L. Milton Construction just scored an $18 million construction loan to build an apartment complex near Magic City Casino.
L. Milton Construction secured the financing from Wells Fargo. The eight-story, 120-unit apartment building, called the Baccarat, will be built on a 39,072-square-foot site at 3930 Northwest Seventh Street, county records show. The 194,695-square-foot development will…

Carlos Mattos buys retail building near Miracle Mile

A company tied to Colombian businessman Carlos Mattos just picked up a retail center on the northwest entrance of Miracle Mile for $16.4 million. The Gables Entrance property at 2209 and 2235-2283 Southwest 37th Avenue in Miami features about 12,400 square feet of leasable space between two, single-story retail buildings. The deal breaks down to about $1,280 per square foot. Coral Way Entrance LLC…

Citizens to increase rates by 8.2% statewide

Citizens Property Insurance is planning to increase rates, yet again. The state-backed insurance company’s board of governors approved a rate increase averaging 8.2 percent in across all of the company’s insurance lines, according to the Sun Sentinel. The rate hike would begin in September 2019. South Florida homeowners will see some of the biggest rate increases in the state. Rates for homeowners insurance…

Video: Reis Economics Barbara Denham Presents Industrial Sector Market Trends

Barbara Denham, Economist with Reis, appears on this commercial real estate show segment to discuss trends and performance in the industrial property sector. Topics include existing supply and delivery expectations, rental rates, and cap rates. She notes that deliveries keep hitting new highs each year, with a slowdown only perhaps coming in a couple of years. She notes that cap rates declined a touch…

Trump boosts federal resources to Opportunity Zones, as real estate investors keep pouring in

For months, real estate investors and developers have been setting up multimillion-dollar Opportunity Zone funds, hoping to cash in on a federal program that offers tax incentives to investors who pour money into properties in designated low-income neighborhoods. On Wednesday, President Trump signed an executive order to direct resources to state and local municipalities to improve basic conditions…

CitizenM moves ahead with Brickell hotel on Perricone’s site

CitizenM is moving forward with plans for what could be its first Miami hotel. The Dutch hotel chain is seeking a building permit for a hotel at 955 South Miami Avenue, on the site of Perricone’s Marketplace & Café in Brickell. Steven J. Perricone sold the property to citizenM last year for $16.2 million. The deal was part of a sale-leaseback agreement with the hotel company, a Perricone’s spokesperson…

Hialeah Is Getting Its First Major Mixed-Use Project In 20 Years

Miami Beach transformed from a granny paradise to a jetsetter’s playground. Coconut Grove went from bohemian to bourgeois. Could Hialeah — the wonderland of pawn shops, mechanics and Cuban bakeries — be the next to gentrify? Developers say they are planning the first major mixed-use development in the area in more than 20 years. On 9 acres at 2901 West 16th Avenue, the former site of Sunny…

Richard Branson’s Virgin Group Will Soon Have Planes, Trains And Cruise Ships Operating Out Of Miami

Sir Richard Branson might be among the world’s most famous Brits, but he can’t seem to get enough of Florida. Bisnow Archives/Julia Bunch Sir Richard Branson, photographed in Dallas riding a horse in 2016 His Virgin Airlines has been operating direct flights between Miami and London since 1986. It will soon be possible for U.K. travelers to take that flight then hop on a Virgin Voyages cruise through…

Billionaire Buzzkill? Developer Jeff Greene Offers Counterpoint To Sunny Real Estate Predictions

More than a dozen panelists spoke at Bisnow’s State of the Market event in West Palm Beach Tuesday, and their outlook for the economy ranged from “bullish” to “cautiously bullish” to “optimistic” to “cautiously optimistic.” Then there was billionaire Jeff Greene. Bisnow/Sam Markovich Arthur J. Gallagher Area Vice President Lisa Neumayer, BET Investments principal Bruce Toll, independent investor Jeff Greene…

Can the Mooch turn institutional investors on to Opportunity Zones?

Anthony Scaramucci was still joking around with his partners when the microphones went live during a Tuesday afternoon conference call meant to draw in investors for his hedge fund SkyBridge Capital’s plan to raise a $3 billion Opportunity Zone fund. Indistinct male voices cajoled one another: “Come on!” said one man. “If you can’t take it nobody can take it,” said another, as classical hold music played on.

World’s First ‘Robotic Supermarket’ Coming To Miami

It’s the quintessential problem for the modern American supermarket: how to offer the wide selection that customers expect, yet still turn a profit after having to pay for its real estate and operating costs. A Massachusetts company, Takeoff Technologies, has devised a solution and is partnering with Miami-based Sedano’s grocery stores to roll it out. Phillip Pessar via Flickr Creative Commons Sedano’s is a…

Lightstone Closes $73 Million Financing for Moxy South Beach

National real estate investor and developer Lightstone today announced the close of $73 million in financing from Canyon Partners Real Estate LLC® (“Canyon”) and CapitalSource, a division of Pacific Western Bank, to develop the 7-story, 202-key Moxy South Beach. The financing package consisted of a $55 million senior loan from CapitalSource and an $18 million preferred equity investment from Canyon.

Michelle Bernstein opening Little Havana restaurant later this month, other restaurant news

Chef and restaurateur Michelle Bernstein is back with a new restaurant, Café La Trova, a modern Cuban concept in Little Havana. Bernstein and bartender and mixologist Julio Cabrera plan to open the new bar and restaurant at 971 Southwest Eighth Street later this month in a 5,000-square-foot space. Carlos Fausto Miranda of Fausto Commercial Realty brokered the deal, along with Daniel Egipcia…

Video: Deloitte 2019 CRE Outlook; Jim Berry on Investing in Talent and Cyber Risk

Jim Berry, Partner and Vice-Chairman with Deloitte, appears in this episode of America’s Commercial Real Estate Show to talk about his firm’s 2019 Commercial Real Estate Outlook. Topics in this segment include cyber security and talent acquisition with respect to commercial real estate. Among the interesting discussions is that about chart covering appeal of the industry to the next generation…

Brickell City Centre set for OK for two more towers

The continuing evolution of Brickell City Centre is set to be considered this week by Miami city commissioners. On the commission’s agenda today (12/13) is a third amendment to a Special Area Plan (SAP) for Brickell City Centre and a second development agreement for the large mixed-use project that has already taken over several city blocks just south of the Miami River. These latest proposals request…

Coral Gables tinkers with fate of oldest downtown building

The final document to pull a demolition permit for the old LaSalle Cleaners building in downtown Coral Gables at 2341 Le Jeune Road was to be submitted Wednesday of this week, according to the lawyer for Mirella LaSalle, the owner of the building. The demolition plan, the last missing piece, was delayed because of trouble finding a civil engineer to prepare and sign off on the plan. Ms. LaSalle has said that…

Artists find few affordable gallery spaces in Wynwood

Fewer artists are finding affordable gallery and studio spaces in Wynwood, and many are forced to say goodbye to its mural-decorated streets. Some are determined to stay, but most newcomers are looking elsewhere for lower rent. Rents are on the rise as Wynwood gains popularity. Artist and co-owner of Projects Gallery Frank Hyder says the area now is much less affordable. He remembers paying $950…

Grove garage getting new terms, to play key role in Regatta Harbour

Miami’s newest parking garage is expected to be finished next spring, playing a key role in a new development on the Coconut Grove waterfront called Regatta Harbour. The City of Miami and the Miami Parking Authority are partners in the public-private partnership bringing the new garage and related development to the site, and city commissioners are today (12/13) set to consider amendments…

Expense is key obstacle in keeping North Dade rail pledge

When planners last week certified 13 miles of North Dade elevated rail as the future, it symbolized a promise kept. But was it purely symbolic, with little chance of happening soon – or ever? Planners four decades ago promised that Metrorail would run there. But it was never built, and residents are still waiting. Last week, though, they celebrated as rail was pledged to finish the job under a 2½-year-old…

Gun maker pulls the trigger on Miami Gardens building

Gun manufacturer Taurus International just sold a warehouse in Miami Gardens for $12.2 million to a company tied to the home appliance wholesaler Kalorik. Taurus International sold the 120,739-square-foot facility at 16175 Northwest 49th Avenue for about $100 per square foot, property records show. The buyer, Sunway Holdings, is managed by David Murad, who is a principal of the home appliance…

Freshwater under contract to buy Little Havana condos and apartments

Freshwater Group is under contract to pay $12.1 million for the Oleander Park apartment building and units at the Oleander House condominium in Little Havana, Freshwater partner Joseph Sayegh confirmed. The Brooklyn-based real estate investment firm would pay roughly $7.6 million for condo units at the Oleander House at 406 Northwest 22nd Avenue, giving Freshwater control of 42 out of the 52…

City of Miami sues FDOT over long-delayed Flagler project

The city of Miami is trying to pressure the Florida Department of Transportation into completing the long-delayed West Flagler Street construction project by the end of this year. FDOT was supposed to complete the $45 million project, which called for replacing an aging water main, rebuilding sidewalks, adding a bike lane and upgrading drainage to 12 blocks, in late 2017. Construction began in 2016.

Sears hires JLL to shop hundreds of stores, while weighing takeover bid

Sears Holdings hired JLL to market about 500 Sears and Kmart stores in the United States, two months after filing for bankruptcy protection. The brokerage is already drawing interest from potential buyers in major markets while Sears still considers a takeover bid from its chairman. Bids have come in from retailers, mall owners and others interested in potentially adaptive reuses of the stores…

Related files plans for affordable housing projects in Miami

Companies tied to the Related Group recently filed plans for three new affordable housing buildings in Little Havana. Related’s The Gallery at River Parc LLC submitted plans to the city of Miami’s building department for a 150-unit building at 750 Northwest 13th Avenue and its Brisas del Rio Apartments is planning a 168-unit building at 800 Northwest 13th Avenue. The property is currently…

Student housing developer buys site near University of Miami

Masoud Shojaee’s Shoma Group just sold a site in Coral Gables to Landmark Properties, a student housing developer, for $30 million. Shoma sold the site at 1515 San Remo Avenue and 1500 Venera Avenue to Standard at Coral Gables LLC, an affiliate of Athens, Georgia-based Landmark, according to property records. Shoma paid a combined $15.2 million to buy out the 47 condo unit owners…

Lightstone scores $73M loan for Moxy South Beach hotel

Lightstone just scored $73 million in financing to develop its Washington Avenue hotel in South Beach. The New York-based real estate investment company secured the financing from Canyon Partners Real Estate and CapitalSource. The funds will be used to build the first Moxy-branded hotel in Florida, a seven-story, 202-key hotel at 915 Washington Avenue. The financing package includes a $55 million…

The Miami Design District and Wynwood Are Competing for a Tri-Rail Station. Which One Will Win?

Tri-Rail is coming to Downtown Miami sometime next year. When you consider that South Florida’s commuter rail network is finally accessing South Florida’s urban core, this is big news no matter how you slice it. First, Tri-Rail will head into Downtown Miami by taking an east-west rail line at 73rd Street and then heading south on the Florida East Coast Railway (FECR) tracks, thereby connecting it with the…

Strip Club Found Liable For Shooting On Property

The recently closed King of Diamonds strip club is known around the world because countless rappers have immortalized it in song. Not far away, though, was a perhaps more notorious club. Google Maps 1430 NW 119th Street in Miami Coco’s over the years had been the site of multiple shootings and the arrest of a drug and weapons dealer named King Dread. One reviewer on Facebook warned in 2016…

Multifamily investors should keep an eye on this market

Multifamily investors looking for places to put their cash may want to consider workforce housing. The market — which is rental communities for low- to median-income workers — has outperformed the broader multifamily market, according to a new CBRE report cited by HousingWire. The segment has gotten a boost from low vacancy rates and above-average rent growth, and, because a small…

Some luxury condo developers add landing pads for flying cars

As the development of personal transportation drones advances, landing pads are emerging as the latest must-have amenity at condominiums for the wealthiest buyers. For example, three luxury condos will feature flying-car landing pads in Miami, where the 1 percent would be able to travel by air while the other 99 percent are stuck in the city’s notorious traffic congestion. “These flying-car…

Inside look: Photos from TRD’s tour of One Thousand Museum

One Thousand Museum is months away from opening and The Real Deal got an inside look. Construction on the 62-story luxury condominium building is expected to wrap up by March 2019. Housing 83 units, the building is 82 percent sold, according to the building’s sales director, Harvey Daniels of ONE Sotheby’s International Realty. The development team, which includes Louis Birdman…

Industrial development slowing slightly nationwide, after strong growth: report

The number of industrial buildings coming online nationally slowed slightly in the first nine months of 2018, after several years of strong growth. A total of 237 million square feet of new industrial space was delivered across the country from January through September, down slightly from 243 million square feet year over year, according to a new report by Avison Young. The slowdown follows a major…

EB-5 visa program extended…until Dec. 21

The federal EB-5 visa program received another extension as part of the larger federal spending bill, this time until Dec 21. EB-5 had been set to expire on Dec. 7. Congress now has two weeks to decide whether to extend again or shut down the controversial green card initiative. The program gives foreign investors the opportunity to obtain a green card if they invest at least $500,000 in a project and…

Appeals court overturns Airbnb victory against city of Miami

A new development in the ongoing fight between the city of Miami and Airbnb has both sides claiming victory.The Third District Court of Appeals ruling on Wednesday overturned a lower court injunction that prevented the city from enacting new regulations clamping down on short-term rentals in single-family neighborhoods. In a statement, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said the city is pleased with the…

Hundreds of Sears stores could survive in “last-ditch effort” to save chain

Hundreds of Sears stores across the U.S. could be saved in what one analyst called “a last-ditch effort” by company chairman Edward Lampert to buy the company out of bankruptcy. Lampert’ ESL Investments already is Sears Holdings’ biggest shareholder and creditor. On Thursday, he outlined a $4.6 billion bid to take over the rest of the century-old retailer, according to Bloomberg…

Las Vegas billionaire buys 21-acre Casino Miami, plans hotel

Las Vegas billionaire Phil Ruffin is gambling on a new city. Ruffin, who owns the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino in Vegas and a number of other businesses, bought Casino Miami, a 21-acre casino near Miami International Airport at 3500 Northwest 37th Avenue, according to a press release. Property records show Fronton Holdings LLC, tied to Boston-based Summit Partners, sold the sprawling site. The 200,000…

Chinese investors sold $1B in US real estate in Q3

Chinese investors keep retreating from the U.S. real estate market. They offloaded more than $1 billion in U.S. properties in the third quarter, the Wall Street Journal reported. Meanwhile, insurers, conglomerates and other big investors from the country purchased $231 million of property. “This has to do more with a change in how capital is permitted to behave rather than Chinese investors saying…

Aspen Capital buys apartment complex near North Beach town center

A company tied to private equity firm Aspen Capital just bought a newly renovated apartment complex on Normandy Isle in Miami Beach for $5.25 million. Hervé Barbera’s Bar Invest Group sold the 30-unit building at 6905–6921 Rue Vendome for about $175,000 per unit. Records show Barbera bought Rue Vendome in 2012 for $2.6 million. The complex recently underwent a renovation that included…

Video: PwC Partners Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock on the Top Trends to Follow ~ PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019

Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock, partners at PwC, join America’s Commercial Realty Show in studio to discuss the PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019 Outlook. Discussions in this segment include the intensifying ongoing transformation of commercial real estate, easing into the future, and 18 hour cities.

Obligations when there is an anticipatory breach of contract

Businesses in Florida enter into contracts every day and by doing so they are agreeing to be bound by the terms of the contract. This means they must perform the obligations they agreed to perform. This could be either to perform certain services, provide certain products or perhaps simply pay for another company’s goods or services. Another aspect of many contracts is that the parties to the…

Once-contentious Sunset Harbour project scores approvals from Miami Beach

Deco Capital Group secured key approvals from two Miami Beach boards over the past week and is moving forward with its plans for a scaled-back development in the Sunset Harbour neighborhood. Bradley Colmer, managing principal of Deco Capital, said the developer has all the city approvals it needs now that it got the OK from the planning and design review boards, but it’s still facing opposition…

Benderson buys shuttered Toys “R” Us store in Doral

Benderson Development Company is creating a niche: It just bought another former Toys “R” Us store this week. Property records show an entity tied to the company paid $8.5 million for a location in Doral. The 44,542-square-foot building at 1645 Northwest 107th Avenue traded hands for $191 per square foot. The property spans 4 acres and sits just west of Miami International Mall. Records show Toys…

Video: Deloitte 2019 CRE Outlook; Jim Berry on Global Capital Flows

Jim Berry, Partner and Vice-Chairman with Deloitte, joins the host of America’s Commercial Real Estate Show via Skype to talk about his firm’s 2019 Commercial Real Estate Outlook. In this segment, topics that are discussed include capital flows and property technology (proptech). He discusses that over 97% of investors surveyed plan to increase their allocation to commercial real estate, but that most…

South Florida Year In Review: The Top CRE Stories Of 2018

The year 2018 is almost a wrap. Commercial real estate pros across the country spent much of the year marveling that the economic expansion has gone on for a decade, wondering how much longer it could possibly last, and enjoying the spoils for as long as it does. South Florida saw high rents, high land costs, continued population growth, and thankfully no hurricane. Plus, climate change hasn’t…

Century Homebuilders breaks ground on mixed-use project in Miami

Sergio Pino’s Century Homebuilders Group has begun construction of 850 Le Jeune, a new mixed-use project near Miami International Airport. The developer and its partner, Pactia USA, are building 230 multifamily units and about 200,000 square feet of office space at 850 Northwest 42nd Avenue (also known as Le Jeune Road). The project will consist of two, five-story office buildings; a six-story apartment…

Fashion brand Diesel dives into real estate development, starting in Miami

Diesel is sizing up real estate development, choosing Miami’s Wynwood as the location for its first real estate project. The Italian retail clothing’s Diesel Living line is partnering with Bel Invest Group, an international real estate investment company based in Vicenza, Italy, to build a 143-unit condominium complex in the artsy neighborhood, Women’s Wear Daily first reported. Zyscovich Architects is designing…

Thorofare Capital Provides $17 Million Loan to Refinance Historic Langrod Hotel in Downtown Miami

Thorofare Capital has provided a $17 million loan to Langford Partners LLC to help stabilize The Langford Hotel, a building at 121 SE 1st Street constructed in 1926 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It was originally a bank and has housed several banks, an insurance company and other commercial entities over the years. Langford Partners, an affiliate of Stambul USA, purchased…

Affordable housing developers plan senior project in Overtown

Miami-Dade County filed plans for a new affordable housing development in Overtown geared toward seniors. A permit application filed with the city of Miami calls for a three-story, 60-unit apartment project at 301 Northwest 17th Street, next to Williams Park. The estimated cost of the 44,460-square-foot building is $7.8 million. The county commission approved a 99-year ground lease agreement with…

Editor’s note: Private fantasies vs. public realities ~ Considering Valuations of WeWork, Opendoor

There is so much venture capital money flowing into private real estate firms these days that you would be forgiven for turning money-colored green with envy. Take Opendoor, a tech company that allows for automated home buying and selling. The venture capitalists who’ve bet on the startup have valued it at $2 billion, based on a miniscule $10 million in annual revenue. Or WeWork, which is now…

A Leveling Office Sector in Miami

Miami’s office market has had consistently healthy demand for several years, based on strong economic growth and foreign investment. However, the development pipeline is beginning to catch up, which has resulted in an increase in the vacancy rate. More than 2.8 million square feet came online year-to-date, and another 776,000 square feet is expected to come online by year-end. New product added…

Universal Chilling Systems moves to Miami Gardens & other news in South Florida leasing

Universal Chilling Systems just moved from Hialeah into an 11,200-square-foot warehouse at 5400 Northwest 161st Street in Miami Gardens. The company provides cooling solutions for chemical processing, pharmaceutical, food and beverage and other industries. Jordan Todd of International Sales Group and Raydel Enriquez of Vivo Real Estate Group represented the tenant.

Video: PwC Partners Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock Discuss Commercial Property Amenities, Last Mile, and Disruptors ~ PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019

PwC Partners at PwC Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock appear with host Michael in the studio of America’s Commercial Real Sstate Show to talk about the PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019 Outlook. In this segment, discussions include commercial real estate amenities, last mile delivery implications for commercial property, and industry disruptors.

Ware Malcomb Completes Hialeah Mixed-Use Building

Ware Malcomb has completed construction on the office and manufacturing facility of CGI Windows and Doors, located in Hialeah, Fla. The firm provided architectural services for the project, while Miller construction served as the general contractor. Located at 3780 West 104th Street, the new asset was designed with a concrete tilt up and includes a neutral color palette of warm tones and white. CGI…

Video: PwC Partners Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock Discuss Top Markets to Watch; Miami #12 ~ PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019

Byron Carlock and Mitch Roschelle, both Partners at PwC that are involved with its Real Estate Practice, appear on the host of America’s Real Estate Show in studio to discuss the top markets to watch as per the PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019 Outlook. Noting Miami as in the number 12 spot of their self described “popularity contest,” they go through cities/markets that top the list one by…

White House Climate Change Report Highlights Major Implications For Commercial Real Estate

PXhere Glacier melting Several federal agencies, including the U.S. Global Change Research Program, delivered a quadrennial report on the potential effects of climate change and the country’s ability to address them over Thanksgiving Day weekend. The report’s findings were sobering, but did little to sway President Donald Trump, who publicly denounced the study upon its release.

Miami-Dade to seek development bids at transit hub

Miami-Dade will request development bids in the first quarter of 2019 for the Miami Intermodal Center near Miami International Airport to help turn it profitable, according to Alice Bravo, who said her department’s takeover of the multi-million-dollar transit hub has thus far gone “very smoothly.” “There’s 7.8 acres of vacant land that we’re going to issue a [request for proposal] for transit-oriented…

After Brightline deal, Virgin Group gets seaport terminal OK too

If all goes as planned, 2021 will prove huge for South Florida and British billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, as both a high-speed train extension connecting Miami to Orlando on Virgin Trains USA and construction of a new terminal housing Virgin Voyages vessels at PortMiami are expected to reach completion. Miami-Dade commissioners Tuesday approved 12-0 a memorandum of understanding…

Miami-Dade Expressway Authority to upgrade diverging diamond

The Miami-Dade Expressway Authority says it will enhance its first operating diverging diamond interchange at Northwest 27th Avenue and looks forward to completing its second on Northwest 57th Avenue soon. The first of two interchanges debuted in August with police present for two weeks to ensure compliant and safe driving on the traffic-heavy roadway. The two interchanges cost about $155 million…

Brickell-area school scores $19 million loan to build new campus

KLA Elementary School in Miami just scored a $18.7 million loan as the school plans to build a new campus near Brickell. The Miami-based private school secured the loan from FirstBank Florida, the Florida arm of FirstBank Puerto Rico, property records show. The new school will be built on three properties just west of I-95… planning to build the 90,480-square-foot private school at 375 Southwest 15th Road…

Cirque du Soleil co-founder lands $65 million loan for Miami warehouses, estate

Cirque du Soleil co-founder Guy Laliberté closed on a $65 million loan for properties near the Magic City Innovation District and a waterfront home in Miami’s Morningside neighborhood. Property records show Heiva Holdings USA LLC took out about $12.4 million of a larger revolving line of credit from the National Bank of Canada for three warehouses at 300 Northeast 60th Street and an estate at…

Ari Pearl sues, alleging Chetrit affiliate owes him buyout settlement

A longtime partner of the Chetrit family in South Florida is suing the company behind the Chetrit’s $1 billion planned development along the Miami River, alleging he’s owed a piece of his exit settlement. Developer Ari Pearl is suing Miami River JV LLC in Miami-Dade Circuit Court for $1.125 million, the third and final payout as part of a settlement between the two. According to a buyout agreement dated in…

Hotel developer Quadrum Global buys Wynwood site

Quadrum Global just picked up a development site in Wynwood. Remy Jacobson’s Wynwood Design Center LLC sold the 30,000-square-foot property at 2217 and 2233 Northwest Miami Court to Quadrum Pacific LLC, according to Metro 1. The $8.55 million deal closed on Thursday. Quadrum Global, an international real estate investment and development firm, owns the Nautilus South Beach, a 250-key…

Habitat Group launches second phase of Brickell condo project

Habitat Group is launching sales of the second tower at Smart Brickell, a condo-hotel complex with flexible short-term rental options. The three-building project sold out the first tower, with 50 hotel rooms and 50 condos, and is planning on breaking ground on the 25-story building in March, developer Santiago Vanegas said. The condo sellout is about $19 million for the first tower and the estimated…

SoFla’s residential construction starts rise in October, commercial plummets

Residential construction in South Florida picked up in October, year-over-year, while commercial construction dropped off significantly, according to a new report by Dodge Data & Analytics. Commercial construction starts decreased 34 percent last month to $453.7 million, while residential construction starts increased 3 percent to $686.2 million according to the report. Due to the sharp decline in…

Renderings revealed: Duos Hotel in Wynwood & more

Architecture and interior design studio MKDA just released renderings of a new boutique condo-hotel project in Wynwood. Alessandro Ferretti and Vitrium Capital are developing the 51-room condo-hotel building on a 7,250-square-foot lot at 335 Northwest 28th Street. The 37,000-square-foot project, called Duos Hotel, is expected to be completed in 2020. The facade of the building aims to model the…

Virgin Voyages unveils plans for $150 million terminal at PortMiami

Virgin Voyages unveiled its proposal for a multimillion-dollar terminal at PortMiami. Virgin Group founder Richard Branson on Wednesday announced plans for the new 100,000-square-foot cruise terminal located on the northwest side of the port. Construction would begin if and when the Miami-Dade County Commission approves the project, which would be completed by November 2021. The $150 million…

Irrational exuberance? Rising commercial real estate prices could signal warning for economy: Fed Reserve

Ever-rising commercial real estate prices nationwide could be a risk to the stability of the U.S. financial markets, as they were in the last recession. That was the assessment from the Federal Reserve in its inaugural financial stability report on Wednesday. Fed officials cited commercial real estate — in which purchase prices continue to outpace rent increases — as well as nonfinancial corporate borrowing…

MetLife scores $170 million refi for Wells Fargo Center in downtown Miami

Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. just scored a $170 million refinance for its Wells Fargo Center at 333 Southeast Second Avenue in downtown Miami, property records show. The deal comes shortly after its $74 million purchase of a retail center in Wellington. New York Life Insurance Company is the lender for the Wells Fargo office tower. The loan takes over a previous $144.4 million mortgage issued…

Here are the 8 real estate megaprojects coming to SoFla

When Triple Five Group gained approval from Miami-Dade County commissioners earlier this year to build the largest mall in America, the news brought national interest to South Florida’s real estate market. The project will bring an indoor ski-slope to Miami as well as other entertainment, and is betting big on retail at a time when the industry is seeing a surge in vacancies. Yet, American Dream Miami is only…

Active South Florida Commercial Lender Bank OZK slips 1.9% after Piper downgrades on concerns re credit, high exposure to Miami, NYC

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) dips 1.9% in premarket trading after Piper analyst Matthew Breese downgrades the stock to neutral, citing credit concerns after it charged off two large loans. Also notes balance sheet exposure, margin compression, and increasing deposit costs are likely to weigh on the stock even as it’s seen generating better-than-average profitability. Specifically points to +300% commercial…

Miami-Dade to FlipKey and HomeAway: Where’s the tax money?

Miami-Dade County is knocking hard on the doors of FlipKey and HomeAway in an attempt to collect untold millions of dollars in unpaid resort taxes. In two separate lawsuits filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court at the end of October, Miami-Dade accuses FlipKey and HomeAway of not forcing property owners who list on the short-term rental platforms to pay their share of bed taxes. The complaints…

Developer plans $74 million mixed-use project along Grand Avenue in Coconut Grove

A Miami developer is under contract to purchase a large assemblage in the West Grove where it’s planning a $74 million, mixed-use project. Ricky Trinidad’s Metronomic announced plans for Grand Plaza, a 12-building development on Grand Avenue in Coconut Grove. Trinidad’s firm isn’t the first to try to purchase the properties. In 2016, David Martin’s Terra canceled a $35 million offer for the buildings.

Developer has plans for Coconut Grove Village West

Get ready for passenger drones, or not. There is a new plan to build 13 buildings including a hotel, offices and micro-unit apartment buildings in Village West, all low-rise – five stories are planned. A new developer to the Grove, Metronomic, Inc., bought up the land and has plans, including the passenger drones. This multi-block project is called Grand Plaza. The land has been sitting for years, waiting…

Archbishop Curley Notre-Dame sells for $60 million, Avenues to open private school

An heir to The Gap family fortune just bought the former Archbishop Curley Notre-Dame High School site in Little Haiti for $60 million, with plans to bring an exclusive private school to Miami, sources said. A Delaware company, VE FL I Operating LLC, bought the 15.5-acre former Catholic high school at 4949 Northeast 2nd Avenue for $3.8 million per acre, according to property records. The LLC’s address…

Lissette Calderon plans apartments in Allapattah

On the heels of renovating a rental tower on the Miami River, developer Lissette Calderon is now planning to build an apartment building in Allapattah, The Real Deal has learned. A permit application filed with the city of Miami shows Calderon’s TCG Allapattah 17 plans a 13-story, 192-unit building at 1569-1652 Northwest 17th Avenue. Her entity paid $1.7 million for the property, currently home…

Virgin Voyages unveils plans for $150 million terminal at PortMiami

Virgin Voyages unveiled its proposal for a multimillion-dollar terminal at PortMiami. Virgin Group founder Richard Branson on Wednesday announced plans for the new 100,000-square-foot cruise terminal located on the northwest side of the port. Construction would begin if and when the Miami-Dade County Commission approves the project, which would be completed by November 2021. The $150 million…

Irrational exuberance? Rising commercial real estate prices could signal warning for economy: Fed Reserve

Ever-rising commercial real estate prices nationwide could be a risk to the stability of the U.S. financial markets, as they were in the last recession. That was the assessment from the Federal Reserve in its inaugural financial stability report on Wednesday. Fed officials cited commercial real estate — in which purchase prices continue to outpace rent increases — as well as nonfinancial corporate borrowing…

MetLife scores $170 million refi for Wells Fargo Center in downtown Miami

Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. just scored a $170 million refinance for its Wells Fargo Center at 333 Southeast Second Avenue in downtown Miami, property records show. The deal comes shortly after its $74 million purchase of a retail center in Wellington. New York Life Insurance Company is the lender for the Wells Fargo office tower. The loan takes over a previous $144.4 million mortgage issued…

BHS names Bess Freedman as first CEO

Less than a year after being named co-president of Brown Harris Stevens, Bess Freedman has been tapped as the luxury brokerage’s first chief executive. As CEO, Freedman will oversee operations in New York City, the Hamptons, Palm Beach and Miami — consolidating leadership of those regions for the first time. The promotion was announced Tuesday in a companywide email signed by Hall Willkie…

Video: PwC Partners Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock Discuss Market Trends and Current Cycle ~ PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019

Mitch Roschelle and Byron Carlock join the show host in studio to discuss the PwC/ULI Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019 Outlook. Discussions in this brief clip include the our current economic cycle and factors that are affecting commercial real estate. They discuss their Emerging Trends Barometer and its apparent reflection of optimism, as well as Black Swan risk with a concentration on the…

Miami Beach commercial market outpacing condos

The Miami Beach real estate market is holding steady from last year as 2018 nears to a close. On the one hand, condominium sales remain flat as a majority of domestic buyers enter the market and look elsewhere in Miami-Dade County for new inventory. On the other hand, commercial spaces are faring better following a stream of natural crises in previous years. Domestic buyers in Miami Beach are…

Olympia Theater: Police, white knight, screen hero don’t quell theatrical peril

What’s the longest-running theatrical drama in Miami? Hint: it’s been running for 30 years, tying the longest-running Broadway show in history, “The Phantom of the Opera,” which to date has had 12,380 performances. If you’re still puzzled, here’s another hint: the drama is not played out on the stage; it’s what’s happening to the stage itself. And this drama is not yet in its final performance. No, the top…

Fashion Brand Diesel Is Building a Luxury Wynwood Apartment Complex

Miami’s Wynwood used to be a low-income neighborhood full of warehouses and fashion-supply companies. Then it morphed into a neighborhood full of art galleries. Now developers are pricing out cool places such as the Wynwood Yard. The one arthouse movie theater is on its way out while condo towers and a micro-city called the Americas-Asia Trade Center are on the way in. And now, to complete…

Miami moves toward requiring affordable housing in projects

The City of Miami has taken a big step toward creating affordable housing with the inclusionary zoning measure sponsored by Commissioner Ken Russell. City commissioners voted unanimously Nov. 15 to approve on first reading an ordinance to require developers of certain projects to include a portion of affordable residential units. The initiative would affect the area east of Overtown and west of…

Miami Tentatively Approves Mandatory Affordable Housing in Parts of Downtown

Rent in Miami is not quite as expensive as New York, San Francisco, and other major metro areas. But the Magic City’s median income — around $46,000 — is absurdly tiny, so renters here spend some of the largest portions of their salaries on housing in America. This is not an affordable town. Back in 2016, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Barbara Jordan tried to alleviate that issue by passing what’s…

Get Real; Miami was Never a Viable Choice for Amazon

The only thing Miami / Florida can offer Amazon is that Bezos went to school in Florida and the tax advantage? Maybe he doesn’t want to go back to where he went to school? Knowing the school system in Florida, I would not be surprised. Tax advantage? Many other States offer the same or better – thus this is no real advantage. Now we try to get him because of the Latin American market? Mexico is our…

Frank Stronach, Billionaire Owner of Gulfstream and other U.S. Racetracks, In Family Feud With CEO Daughter

The billionaire who has long run Gulfstream Park and other racetracks across North America is suing his daughter over mismanagement of the family’s assets. His son is suing her, too. Paige Alonso via Flickr Creative Commons Horse racing at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla. Now 86, Frank Stronach grew up in Austria during Nazi rule, then emigrated to Canada, where he started Magna International…

Miami seeks firm to run expanded Marine Stadium complex

Miami is looking for a company to manage Miami Marine Stadium, the flex park that surrounds it and a planned welcome center west of the iconic waterfront facility. On the day before Thanksgiving, the city issued a formal request for proposals for management of the city-owned property on Virginia Key. The 64-page solicitation says the city is pleased to offer “an exciting opportunity for a well-qualified…”

In Florida, Medical Marijuana Companies Battle For Dominance

Liberty Health Sciences is on track to open five new medical marijuana dispensaries — or, as the company calls them, “cannabis education centers” — in Florida by the end of the year, adding to the seven it has already established here. It is far from alone. Several players are in quick-expansion mode and competing for market share as the state has now set rules and issued 14 licenses following the legalization…

Terreno Realty Reports Sales Of Industrial Property

Terreno Realty Corporation (NYSE: TRNO) sold an industrial property located in Miami, Florida on November 21, 2018 for a sale price of approximately $4.3 million. The property consists of one light industrial building containing approximately 25,000 square feet on 1.2 acres at 7500 NW 26th Street which is 100% leased to one tenant on a short-term basis. The property was purchased by Terreno Realty…

Move over Amazon, Google’s got some news of its own

Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, has just scooped up a $1 billion business park near its Mountain View headquarters. The tech behemoth purchased Shoreline Technology Park, a 51.8-acre property a few blocks away from its Googleplex, Bloomberg reported. Google is already the main tenant of Shoreline’s 12 buildings. Google’s been on something of a real estate tear. The company recently…

Punch Bowl Social opening in Wynwood & other restaurant news

Time Out Market Miami unveiled new chefs opening at its Miami Beach food hall in February. Chefs Norman Van Aken, Antonio Bachour and Giorgio Rapicavoli are each taking space at the food hall, at 1601 Drexel Avenue. Veronica Menin and Diego Tosoni will open Love Life Cafe; Suzy Batlle is bringing Azucar Ice Cream; Christian and Dominica Plotczyk, the owners of Ella’s Oyster Bar, will open Salt & Brine.

Aston Martin Residences nabs $200 million construction loan

The Coto family of Argentina closed on a $200 million construction loan to build Aston Martin Residences, a luxury waterfront condo tower in downtown Miami. Riverwalk East Developments LLC, an affiliate of the Coto’s G&G Business Developments, secured the financing from Brazilian lender Itaú BBA International, property records show. G&G broke ground on the 66-story, 391-unit tower at 300 Biscayne…

Video: Here’s how Amazon’s HQ2 incentives add up

Amazon recently announced it will be splitting its second headquarters, commonly referred to as Amazon HQ2, between Queens, New York and Northern Virginia. However, the incentives given to the company have inspired a marked backlash due to a general feeling that the incentives were unfairly extracted from the winners. The gist of the complaint is that Amazon made the search process look like a…

Rockwood and Mill Creek JV buys Modern Miami rental tower

A joint venture between Rockwood Capital and Mill Creek Residential just bought the Modern Miami apartment building near the Miami River for $47.45 million. Chicago-based Waterton Associates is the seller. Property records show the 166-unit apartment building at 1444 Northwest 14th Avenue sold in addition to a vacant, 16,714-square-foot lot directly west of the property. Waterton Chairman and CEO…

Public officials push back on NDAs in wake of Amazon’s HQ2 search

Public officials across the country are questioning whether they’ll sign nondisclosure agreements in the future after facing some backlash surrounding the secrecy around Amazon’s HQ2 search. It’s not uncommon for companies looking to land tax breaks and other incentives to require local officials to sign NDAs as part of economic-development deals. But as part of its high-stakes search for a second…

Randall Hilliard files complaint against Miami Beach Historic Preservation Board members

A political consultant has filed an ethics complaint against three members of an influential Miami Beach land use board, accusing them of violating the state’s Sunshine Law because they’re also members of a non-profit. On November 19, Randall Hilliard, who also goes by the nom de plume “Prince of Darkness,” filed a complaint with the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics against Jack Finglass, Nancy Liebman…

Doral’s Westside Office Plaza secures 27,650 sf of leases & other leasing news

The Westside Office Plaza in Doral just secured 27,650 square feet of new leases. The master-planned office park at 8200-8400 Northwest 33rd Street sits on 22 acres of land and features 363,328 square feet of office space. Avanti Way Realty leased 6,615 square feet and the Latin American healthcare business Guidewell-Sanitas inked a 21,038-square-foot lease at 8400 Northwest 33rd Street. State Street…

Amazon opens 100,000-square-foot distribution center in Sunrise

Amazon decided against putting its second headquarters in South Florida, but the online retailer opened another distribution center to ensure speedy deliveries in the tri-county area. Amazon has opened a distribution center in 100,000 square feet at the Sawgrass International Corporate Park in Sunrise, according to Lou Sandors, the city’s economic development director. The space formerly was…

Wexler family lists two Lincoln Road retail properties, each with $6.5M minimum bid

Two retail properties along Lincoln Road in Miami Beach are up for grabs. The two 8,000-square-foot retail buildings, at 222 Lincoln Road and 298 Lincoln Road are owned by the Wexler family. The properties are part of a larger 25,600-square-foot retail development, built in 1946, that is currently anchored by the Alvin’s Island beachwear shop. The properties are located between Collins Avenue and…

Mattress One faces evictions across Miami-Dade County

There won’t likely be Black Friday doorbuster deals at most Mattress One stores in Miami-Dade this weekend. Instead, the doors may be padlocked as the mattress retailer has been kicked out of its locations from Midtown Miami to Kendall, according to recent eviction complaints… 10755-10805 Southwest 72nd Street… 8200 Flagler Street… 3160 North Miami Avenue… 18355 Northwest 57th Avenue…

Contractors and subcontractors must be paid promptly

Construction projects in Florida vary in size and complexity, but many involve various different types of trades in order to complete the project. This is especially true for large projects such as office buildings and apartment buildings. These types of projects will include heavy equipment operators, steel workers, electricians, people to put up sheetrock, painters and many more professionals. Generally…

Brightline parent company sells industrial site to JPMorgan subsidiary

Florida East Coast Industries just sold a warehouse near Miami International Airport for $31.1 million to a subsidiary of JPMorgan Asset Management. Coral Gables-based FECI, the parent company of the high-speed passenger rail Brightline, sold the 9.2-acre property at 3200 Northwest 67th Avenue for $3.4 million per acre, property records show. The warehouse is part of the South Florida Logistics…

CK Privé Group’s principals allegedly took out loan without partners’ consent: lawsuit

A brewing legal war among a group of real estate development partners could have negative consequences for a slate of new commercial projects in Aventura and North Miami Beach, including the redevelopment of Dean’s Gold strip club. RH 18 Development and Carf 18 last month sued Alberto, Jacobo and Shlomo Kamhazi, as well as their company Biscayne 18 Development LLC, which owns a complex of…

South Florida’s largest office sales in October

The second largest office sale of the month was Bob Brockway’s $10.9 million purchase of a building directly across the street from his Mercedes-Benz of Coral Gables dealership. A company led by architect F. Michael Steffens and Marjorie Goldman sold the 36,600-square-foot, three-story office building at 300 Sevilla Avenue. The deal breaks down to about $300 per square foot. South Miami Medical Arts…