Hello friends, it’s April 15th Tax Day!! I’ve been so busy with real estate I’ve made no time for blogging… I can attest that consumer confidence is on the rise with Miami Dade “Beaches” showing sales increases at 20% over last month while Miami Dade 71% (condos YTD) over this time last year! The REO’s have become hard to catch with multiple offers and delay strategies used by the bank representatives while they collect offers. Properties that used to sell for $800k (oceanfront) priced as low as $350k (ie. La Gorce Palace). In between, I’ve also been busy finally obtaining my Broker’s license through the State of Florida, having my 32nd Birthday and doing many new deals from multiple luxury rentals to 5 pending offers on condos to even negotiating a commercial property on Biscayne Boulevard.

It’s refreshing to see strong activity and a majority of factors in favor of a stable market, I see a halt on price depreciation by 4th quarter… { Miami Beach }. I don’t relay what’s happening in Miami Dade County (Downtown Miami Blog) but more so on a local specialty area of the Miami Dade Beaches. The Jade Condos Sunny Isles website and blog are getting loads of attention but I have yet to take on a listing to market. Maybe this is a good thing as seller expectations have now (are now catching) caught up with true market values (or at least in the right direction for sales activity). JADE Beach Unit 4008 is a deal and will sell soon.  The MiamiDreamRealty.com website has climbed very high on the search engines with over 20,000 visitors each month and ranking very well organically for Sunny Isles Real Estate, South Beach FL real estate, South Beach FL Condos, Miami Beach FL Condos, Bal Harbour Real Estate and so many more keywords. I’ve got big goals and plans in store for each website and blog this year and a new collaboration with a trusted colleague as we build a blogsite for what will soon be the most desirable condo hotel… More coming this month. Here’s a short video clip of a unit which sold in 2007 for $1.450M and is now on the market at a fraction of the price (under contract).

South Beach to Sunny Isles Real Estate Consultant, Micro Economist. If you’re thinking of placing your luxury estate on the market, contact me for a marketing overview and pricing band analysis to determine the proper selling price. If you’d like to receive the latest local real estate news via blog postings & updates, you can easily be notified by RSS feed (see upper right column) or by email above every time a new posting occurs. Preview the JADECondosSunnyIsles.com website exclusive to Jade Beach & Jade Ocean Condos! Have a great week and call any time toll free 1.888.383.7326 or view new condos here.

Sunny Isles Beach Pier

Edition #2 of the 2008 Sunny Isles Beach Condo Index. We will be comparing the luxury oceanfront market from the 1st Quarter Sunny Isles Condo Indexto today’s updated 4Q Sunny Isles Condo Index including premier luxury towers such as Turnberry Ocean Colony, Acqualina, JADE Beach, Trump Palace, Trump Royale, Trump Towers I, II & III, Ocean 4, and a few select others. For various reasons, I’ve left out other great residential oceanfront towers from this Index such as Ocean III, Ocean II, Pinnacle, Millennium and the oceanfront condo hotel properties including the Trump International Resort, Le Meridian (M Resort) and the newest Sonesta Sole.  Sunny Isles Beach

This year has been exceptionally good for my business with record luxury sales, an invitation to the Million Dollar Guild (CLHMS) and what I believe to be a slow turn around in our “local” market. WHY? Well Miami Dade seems to have set the National trend of a downward real estate market back in 4Q 2005. We are now in the 3rd year of a depreciating market seeing approximately 35 to 40% depreciated real estate values. Inventory has decreased month over month from 2008 (although insignificant numbers). We also expect to set the National trend for a real estate turn around! In the next blog posting I’ll be elaborating a bit more on this potential turn around including the Sunny Isles Beach, Bal Harbour, Miami Beach, North Bay Village real estate and South Beach FL real estate “Micro” Markets which the Media Drive By’s fail to separate each entity from Miami as a whole. From a Miami Beach micro economists view point, we must analyze the local entities instead of feeding into the media’s fear of the National real estate market or even the reports on Miami Dade County. WHY? When you check the temperature outside, do you look at the National temperature or do you look at YOUR local temperature? That’s right and same with local real estate markets… it’s dependant on the Sunny Isles Local Market Conditions and this is what I am relaying herein the Miami Beach Real Estate Blog Posts so check back often.

On to the Sunny Isles 4Q 2008 Condo Index… As of today we are noting 1560 total condos for sale in Sunny Isles Beach. This year, there have been 481total closed sales (ALL figures are derived from the Multiple Listing Service MLS on November 30th). What we will be analyzing are statistics and trends for the most desirable luxury towers along Sunny Isles Beaches.

Percentage Available Inventory, Average List Price & Average Price Per Square Foot for leading luxury condo towers currently listed on the MLS.

• Acqualina- 17875 Collins Avenue | 27 of 247 or 11% | Ave List Price $2.954 | Ave PPSF $847
• JADE Beach- 17001 Collins Avenue | 22 of 248 or 9% | Ave List Price $1.489 | Ave PPSF $696
• JADE Ocean- 17121 Collins Avenue | Released 1Q 2009 with No MLS records
• Turnberry Ocean Colony North Tower – 16051 Collins Avenue | 25 of 130 or 19% | Ave List Price $2.341 | Ave PPSF $785
• Turnberry Ocean Colony South Tower- 16047 Collins Avenue | 34 of 130 or 26% | Ave List Price $2.261 | Ave PPSF $770
• Trump Palace- 18101 Collins Avenue | 42 of 275 or 15% | Ave List Price $1.244 | Ave PPSF $683
• Trump Royale (Just Released) – 18201 Collins Avenue | 2 of 275 or 1% | Ave list Price $854K | Ave PPSF $466
• Trump Tower I- 16001 Collins Avenue | 34 of 271 or 13% | Ave List Price $1.230 | Ave PPSF $543
• Trump Tower II – 15901 Collins Avenue | 15 of 271 or 6% | Ave List Price $1.215 | Ave PPSF $568
• Trump Tower III – 15850 Collins Avenue | Released 1Q 2009 with No MLS records
• Sayan- 16275 Collins Avenue | 25 of 88 or 28% | Ave List Price $1.210 | Ave PPSF $520
• Ocean Four – 17201 Collins Avenue | 75 of 281 or 27% | Ave List Price $1.068 | Ave PPSF $518
• La Perla- 16699 Collins Avenue | 56 of 326 or 17% | Ave List Price $661K | Ave PPSF $435

Ave. Price Per Square Foot on Condos SOLD within the last 6 months, Sale Price to List and # Days On Market

• Acqualina- 17875 Collins Avenue | 8 Closed Sales at $602 PPSF (10% decrease since 1Q) | 92% SP/LP | 314 DOM
• JADE Beach – 17001 Collins Avenue | Just Released this month with No Closed Sales
• JADE Ocean- 17121 Collins Avenue | Released 1Q 2009 with No Closed MLS Sales
• Turnberry Ocean Colony North Tower – 16051 Collins Avenue | 6 Closed Sales at $637 PSF (9% decrease since 1Q) | 83% SP/LP | 274 DOM
• Turnberry Ocean Colony South Tower- 16047 Collins Avenue | 4 Closed Sales at $784 PSF (20% INCREASE since 1Q) | 103% SP/LP | 147 DOM
• Trump Palace- 18101 Collins Avenue | 13 Closed Sales at $537 PSF (1% INCREASE)| 90% SP/LP | 116 DOM
• Trump Royale – 18201 Collins Avenue | Just Released this month with No Closed Sales
• Trump Tower I- 16001 Collins Avenue | 2 Closed Sales at $419 PSF | 96.5% SP/LP | 155 DOM
• Trump Tower II – 15901 Collins Avenue | Just Released with No Closed MLS Sales
• Trump Tower III – 15850 Collins Avenue | Released 1Q 2009 with No Closed MLS Sales
• Sayan- 16275 Collins Avenue | 1 Closed Sale at $388 PSF (10% decrease since 1Q) | 77% SP/LP | 220 DOM
• Ocean Four – 17201 Collins Avenue | 6 Closed Sales at $442 PSF (8% decrease since 1Q) | 91% SP/LP | 232 DOM
• La Perla- 16699 Collins Avenue | 14 Closed Sales at $403 PSF (2% decrease since 1Q) | 94.9% SP/LP | 190 DOM

Executive Summary- In looking at the health of a building we first look at available inventory. I typically relay a healthy inventory level of less than 15%. We see a unhealthy inventory levels in Sayan (28%), Ocean 4 (27%) and surprisingly in the South Tower of Turnberry Ocean Colony (26%). On the flipside, Trump Tower I looks somewhat healthy at only 13% inventory available for sale. In contrast to 1Q Sunny Isles Condo Index, we see Turnberry Ocean Colony and Trump Palace increasing in selling price per square foot (Could there have been mortgage fraud at Turnberry Ocean Colony with a recent sale at 130% of list price?). These number’s are skewed… Taking these luxury oceanfront towers into account, we see an average asking price per square foot at $621 with a  selling price per square foot for Sunny Isles Beach real estate at $526.50psf for a $94.50psf difference from the asking price. Average Days On Market is at 206 DOM or 6.87 months to sell compared to 177 DOM or 5.9 months to sell for an increase of 1 month additional selling time.

• Overall, it appears we are averaging 2.57% depreciation for the year.
• 85% Sale to List Price Ratios
• Days On Market DOM has increased from 177 to 206 Days to Sell (14% more marketing time)

South Beach to Sunny Isles Real Estate Consultant, Micro Economist. If you’d like to receive the latest local real estate news via blog postings & updates, you can easily be notified by RSS feed (see upper left column) or by email above every time a new posting occurs. The new JADE Condos Sunny Isles.com is now available! Have a great week and call any time toll free 1.888.383.7326 or view new condos here.

10201 Collins Bal Harbour

A 5.5 Acre site on the world famous Bal Harbour real estate strip just set a historic listing record for the East Coast with a listing price of $225,000,000. This premier location will be only 2 parcels down from the Bal Harbour shops and the new St. Regis Residence & Resort (completion date of 2011). The beachfront parcel located at 10201 Collins Avenue, has 400 feet along the Atlantic Ocean (x 600′ Depth) and now houses an oceanfront country club called Bal Harbour Club (how original) from 1976. Thorpe Sotheby’s International Realty out of Vero Beach is handling the marketing and sale as they are targeting the International buyer’s in the Middle East, Russia, the United Kingdom and Canada and marketing it as qualifying for 675,350 Square Feet of Condominium or Hotel use with restaurant and other uses with rezoning adding another 225,000 Square Feet of buildable space.

“We’re looking for someone with a lot of capital looking to get out of paper investments so they can buy a real estate development asset of this kind of value.” - TCPalm.com

My opinion for highest and best use on this oceanfront land parcel is as a mixed use, high end condominium with retail

Bal Harbour Parcel

space suitable for the Bal Harbour lifestyle and positioned to coincide with the Bal Harbour shops. An oceanfront restaurant is what we need to see with a celebrity name to back it up and a price per square foot to match the condo residences similar to St. Regis Bal Harbour yet without the hotel aspect. I believe St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort will be a great success and there are only so many tourists who will utilize Bal Harbour as a vacation destination instead of the desirable South Beach FL real estate with now an exorbitant amount of hotels. Bal Harbour is missing this key ingredient that may make sense to build after 2011. If you’d like to receive the latest local real estate news via blog postings & updates, you can easily be notified by RSS feed (see upper left column) or by email above every time a new posting occurs. Have a great week and call any time toll free 1.888.383.7326 or view new condos here.

News Reports are indicating Real Estate Investors “Vultures” sensing prime buying time along Miami Dade and Beaches. Deep discounts are the goal with Vulture funds ready to swoop in aggressively on strong buying opportunities in South Florida. Typically a Vulture fund will target & negotiate with condo developers and their lenders who can’t sell enough units to pay off the loans used to build them. They then purchase large blocks of unsold inventory at 40 to 60 cents (Cash purchase) on the dollar. Some believe that last weeks Wall Street meltdown may show us the arrival of such a moment.

Carthartes aura by D.Fletcher

A lot of people who were standing on the sidelines are now realizing this is their time to get in. When this occurs and the 100 plus Vulture funds begin acquiring South Florida’s unsold inventory, the word will quickly spread and the pent up demand will begin to flourish. This buying power available & ready will be a clear sign to show the world our market had bottomed, bringing us to a rapid recovery. The trend is and has been occurring along the beaches this year and Downtown will soon see a transition from depreciation. The majority will agree when the Vulture funds begin buying strong, others may start buying as well.

Who does it better than Jorge Perez of The Related Group? A recent article in Miami Today tells us Perez partnered with private equity firm Lubert Adler Pertners in a bulk purchase of 120 units at 50 Biscayne, a project Related codeveloped with Atlanta based Cousin Properties.

“The Cousins Related partnership will retain joint ownership of seven units in the 54-story, 528-unit project. Cousins estimated its share of the pre-tax profit on the project to date at about $18 million before minority interest.” -MiamiToday article

“Lucas Lechuga, a Realtor with Miami Condo Investments, said it’s hard to say if and when the vulture fund’s action will affect prices. “Right now it doesn’t do anything until we see what happens,” he said. “If the buyer puts them back on the market at a discount it will affect the price and make it very difficult for people trying to sell individual units. Most Realtors won’t take it into account because it won’t show up as closed sales in the MLS though more astute Realtors may eventually consider it. But it will take some time for them to realize that this sale was made.”

The problem that Vulture funds face is that the majority of developers see the Miami real estate market slowly improving and are deciding not to let their efforts go so cheaply. Their is enough clarity in the South Florida market for developers to realize there is an overstatement of the Miami crisis in the world media and fund industry and it’s not always necessary for such deep discounts. Other rookie desperate developers in a financial crisis with their lenders may view these large discounted condo purchases as a blessing. If the project is inferior and overpriced, these developers will have to cut and run from the headaches.

Their are a few outstanding new projects in South Beach with unsold inventory and major potential. Are any South Beach developers in financial trouble and needing to sell at 50 cents on the dollar? NO. I’m working with investor groups seeking to purchase low & mid rise “boutique condo buildings” at majority ownership along the beaches and the goal is 15 to 20% off list with a market SP/LP average at 10%. On a cash purchase the return is typically 2.5% to 3.5% with the planned potential for the next boom on a long term hold. The tax advantages for any savvy investor holding real estate also make great sense year after year. Supply decreasing & demand increasing with limited space along the beaches and an ever increasing amount of tourism with the weak US dollar. Time will tell but I am bullish on the beaches! Let the readers know your thoughts on this topic. The Miami Beach blog has now surpassed 20,000 viewers! If you’d like to receive new blog postings & updates once available, you can easily be notified by RSS feed (see upper left column) or by email every time a new posting occurs. Have a great week and call any time toll free 1.888.383.7326 or view new condos here.

A new article has just been released by the South Florida Business Journal showing Bank United’s “Condo Blacklist.” These are the high risk condo properties that this bank will not be issuing loans to now and possible ever. Many of Miami Dade’s condo properties and homes witnessed a 25 percent increase in their overall value year over year from 2003 to 2005.  By 1Q 2006, things began to change and now a 25% to 40% depreciation has occurred.  And here we are now limping out of 2007 with the worst yet to come apparently in 2008 for the mainland of Miami Dade including Downtown Miami, Brickell condos and the Miami River. Property values continue to crash in these areas, foreclosures are at an all time high and now comes word that now over 100 condos in the Downtown Miami area are being blacklisted. Interested buyers looking for mortgages to buy units in Miami’s Opera Tower, Everglades on the Bay or Four Ambassadors shouldn’t bother approaching Bank United. The Miami based bank has included them on a list of 191 condo projects it will not be writing loans for.The Business Journal obtained a list of “non permissible” projects used internally at Bank United (BKUNA) and updated as of Jan. 14. Most of the forbidden properties were in Downtown Miami and were added at the last update. It wasn’t clear who at the bank wrote the list, but the author stated a reason for almost every project declared off limits.

Declining market value was the biggest culprit, followed by high investor concentration as much as 70 percent in some cases. Bank United’s decision is also based on numerous foreclosures, delinquent condo association dues and structural based litigation. Bank United spokeswoman Melissa Gracey said the list is based a similar guidelines used by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The key point of this mess, not even mentioned in the article, is the domino effect. Anyone who purchased a unit and has closed on it is now trapped into what may occur. There is no one to sell to because no financing is available so speculators are left on the sidelines with heavy carrying costs. By publicly posting the exclusion list, other lenders are sure to follow suit. It will become difficult if not impossible to purchase a unit in any of those 119 projects. The implication is a substantial number of those projects will fail. Whatever banks financed those towers are going to end up owning them. Those who have a placed a down payment on a unit but have not yet closed may wish to seek legal advice to see if the shutdown of bank financing is somehow material to the purchase agreement. Some no doubt will simply decide to walk away regardless of the answer. Bank United just started a domino effect. The dominoes will keep falling until they reach the banks lending money to these projects. Undercapitalized banks funding these projects may likely fail.

Bank United’s Non Permissible Condo List (Miami’s condo heavy hitters in alphabetical order) 50 Biscayne in Miami, 600 Biscayne, 1650 Biscayne, 900 Biscayne Bay, 500 Brickell, 1390 Brickell Key, 1600 Club, Asia, Atlantis Condo, Axis on Brickell, Bay Lofts, Biscayne Tower, Blue, Brickell Bay Club, Brickell Bay Tower, Brickell on the River, Brickell Place, Brickell Station, Bristol Tower, Capital at Brickell, Carbonell, Cima Condo, Cite, City 24, Club at Brickell, Commodore Bay, Costa Bella, Courts Brickell Key, Courvoisier Courts, Cynergi, Downtown Lofts, Emerald at Brickell, Epic Dupont, Espirito Santo Plaza, Everglades on the Bay, Filling Station Lofts, Fortune House, Four Ambassadors, Four Seasons Hotel & Tower, Golden Bay Club, Icon on Brickell, Infinity at Brickell, IOS on the Bay, Ivy, Jade Residences at Brickell, Latitude on the River, Marina Blue, Marquis Miami, Mary Brickell Village, Met 1, Metropolitan, Midtown Miami, Mint at Riverfront, Neo River Lofts, Neo Vertica, Oasis on the Bay, One Miami, One Tequesta Point, Opera Tower, Paramount on the Bay, Paramount Park, Parc Lofts, Park Place, Platinum, Plaza on Brickell, Point at Brickell, Quantum on the Bay, River Oaks, Sail Boat Cay, Seacoast Towers, Skyline Mary Brickell Village, Skyline on Brickell, Soleil Miami, Solaris Brickell Bay, Summit Brickell, Star Lofts, Sunset Harbour, Ten Museum Park, The Carriage House, The Jade Condominium, The Mark on Brickell Bay, Three Tequesta Point, Two Tequesta Point, Uptown Lofts, Villa Brickell, Villa Magna, Villa Regina, Vue at Brickell, Wind by Neo, Yorker. Brought to you by the South Florida Business Journal

Whew, what a list! Many on the list were outside of Miami Dade (included Las Vegas) and we find the majority blacklisted are located in Downtown Miami including Brickell and the Miami River. Notice something crucial from above…Banks have faith in Oceanfront Condos of Miami Dade including Sunny Isles real estate, Bal Harbour real estate, Miami Beach FL real estate and South Beach FL real estate! I’m reaffirmed that the demand is and always will be based on location, location, location. ie) Oceanfront Luxury Condos where there is limited space to build and continued demand. Through increased tourism (currently the Miami Boat Show), National and International buyer’s seeking the Miami oceanfront Deals and Low interest rates and even in this great Buyers market. You’re invited to leave any thoughts, opinions and comment below.

So what is selling these days in Miami Dade County? Everyone is asking… We will review the sales of Sunny Isles real estate along with Miami Beach FL real estate to see what buyer’s are finding as HOT buys along the ocean..

Sunny Isles oceanfront condos have 6 closed this month worth reviewing. Acqualina, Ocean One, Oceania I, Trump Palace and Turnberry Ocean Colony (2). These selling prices range from $500k (Oceania I) to $2.595M (Turnberry Ocean Colony) and what we see is the sale price to list price ratio ranges from 94% to 81% (both at Turnberry Ocean Colony). The best price per square foot was only $397.26 psf at Oceania I while the highest was $796.51psf at Turnberry Ocean Colony. Much has to do with building age and amenities as Oceania I is from 1990 while Turnberry Ocean Colony is the premier 2008 South Tower. Both Acqualina and Trump Palace sold at $663.39 and 576.37 psf. respectively. What is worth mentioning is the Pending Sales of 2008 are already at 11 which proves a slower holiday season as people travel and families join together. This month each of the above buildings have additional accepted offers but also luxury oceanfront condos including Ocean Two, Ocean Four, Trump Grande, Pinnacle and La Perla. Asking prices ranged from $2.499M to $549k and we will soon see what they’ve sold for. On average, sale price to list price ratios are at 88% for a great 12% off reduced asking prices starting off 2008 right for buyers. Each real estate transaction is different so it’s important to analyze each condo on an independent basis. This real estate blog is only to get an idea of what’s happening in Sunny Isles real estate.

Miami Beach FL oceanfront condos (including South Beach FL real estate) have 9 closed this month worth reviewing. Continuum, Setai (2), Decoplage (2), Roney Palace, The Collins and Fountainebleau II. These selling prices range from $417k (Decoplage) to $2.5M (Continuum) and what we see is sale price to list price ratios ranging from a low 69% (Decoplage) to a high of 101% (Setai Resort). The best price per square foot was only $426.92 psf at The Collins while the highest was $1,500 psf at The Setai Resort. Much has to do with location and building demand & amenities. The Collins is an excellent oceanfront condo conversion in mid beach while the Setai is the sought after and highly desired South Beach Resort. Akoya and Continuum each sold at $581 psf and $1220 psf respectively. The infamous Kevin Tomlinson of EWM sold The Continuum unit after 280 days on the market and saving his customer 16% off the asking price! I’m always inspired by the SoBe Realtor elite and learn a lot when reviewing their sales figures. On average, sale price to list price ratios are at 89% saving today’s buyers 11% off the already greatly reduced asking prices. This month pending sales for Miami Beach FL real estate are very low at only 3 currently under contract (2 at Blue Diamond)! Why is this? My opinion is location vs. selling price per square foot. South Beach is and will always be HOT real estate and in demand. The difference is Sunny Isles real estate sells for a much better price per square foot ($824psf SoBe vs. $569psf SIB) and has a lot to offer new residents with it’s convenience to Aventura, Bal Harbour real estate and both Ft. Lauderdale and Miami International Airports! If it’s the action you desire, I strongly recommend Miami Beach FL real estate yet Sunny Isles real estate is only 20 minutes to all the SoBe excitement. Today’s end users and even investors are penny wise to make smart investment decisions on South East Florida real estate. International Buyer’s are taking advantage of a soft real estate market and the weak dollar offering VERY aggressive prices today on Sunny Isles luxury condos. The new Sunny Isles Millionaires Row is just tremendous with Trump going all out like he did in NYC when the values were down. Trump now has 4 new signature towers finishing this year on into 4Q 2009 along with both Jade Ocean and Jade Beach which I’m super excited about. The selection today for buyers is great but at times may be confusing. The help of a Realtor assisted sale makes the work, time and stress so much less for today’s Southeast Florida Buyers. Contact me to discuss this blog by commenting below or call anytime to talk Miami Beach FL real estate sales.