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The oceanfront condo activity since August is quite incredible.  In every luxury oceanfront condo building, there have been buying opportunities and there are buyers buying.  Followers of blogsouthflorida know that when I reference buying opportunities, I am in most cases referring to “motivated sellers”, not short sales or bank owned properties.

There has been a significant increase in sales.   The opportunities we have identified and monitor are truly quite incredible.  Units that are direct oceanfront units and are considered the most desirable and sought after are selling and inventories are declining. Building after building these unique opportunities are being sold and those truly incredible deals are going fast.

In Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach In the past 60 days there have been 89 closed oceanfront condo sales with the specification of at least 2 bedrooms priced over $800,000.

At One Bal Harbour, there was only one unit listed in one of the most desirable lines.  It sold and closed

Canyon Ranch, Miami Beach,  one of my direct oceanfront 2 bedroom listings had multiple bids on it!!!

At the Palms , in Fort Lauderdale, there were about 6 units listed under $1 million.  They have pretty much all sold.

The South Florida Oceanfront condo market is very unique.

Sales are defintely up !  Housing figures are showing an increase in sales. What does this mean for oceanfront condos in South Florida?  Luxury buildings that we follow are showing an increased number of sales all along the coast.  A year ago the numbers were quite different.  South Florida oceanfront condos have a world wide appeal and continue to be a desirable location for a second, third or forth home acquisitions Sales figures in this unique market has shown some incredible activity.

How does that translate to the luxury oceanfront condos that we follow?  The most obvious trend is that the least expensive condos in the luxury buildings are selling.  When prices went down there were some new lows presenting buying opportunites that were previously unheard of.  For example,  the Palms in Fort Lauderale, prices for condos in this luxury building average a $1 million and up.  There were about a half a dozen units priced below $1million and almost all of them have sold.  There are buyers in the marketplace identifying great buildings and picking up great inexpensive buys.

Bargain priced units are not the only condos selling.  Desirable units with  large square footage and/or exceptional views are also selling. Turnberry Ocean Colony has a reported 4 units under contract.  This is one of the finest buildings along the coast.  Prices are well over $1million.

The Beach Club, with 1200 units in total, not surprisingly,  has the most activity of any oceanfront building.  29 units have gone to contract !!!

Here is a sampling of what has been reported as pending sales in several buildings:

There are buyers in the market place identifying great buildings and picking up great inexpensive buys.  There are also buyers that are taking advantage of having several desirable units to choose from.  As we move into the winter season, I anticipate that this activity will increase as buyers jump into the market.   We will continue to see inventories decline as well.

In the last 90 days there have been many oceanfront condo sales that have closed.  We wanted to be specific by showing our readers what has actually sold, and what prices buyers are paying.  As we move into the fall season, increased sales are expected for second home buyers looking for good buying opportunties.

Blogsouthflorida, focuses primarily on newer oceanfront condos so the condos listed are in buildings built after 2000 and with a minimum of 2 bedrooms.

In Miami-Dade there were 89 oceanfront condos that sold.  The Penthouse at Continuum sold for $9,900,000, asking price $14,500,000,  32% off asking.  There has been several sales at Turnberry Ocean Colony in Sunny Isles.  This is one of our favorite properties in South Florida and prices on a per square foot basis are quite attractive.  There have also been several sales at One Bal Harbour, another sought after luxury oceanfront property.  We are delighted to see several sales at Canyon Ranch as well.

Oceanfront Condos closed sales in Miami Dade, which includes; Miami Beach, Bal Harbour, Sunny Isles, etc. from May 4,2009 through August 2, 2009.  Criteria used includes only buildings built after 2000 and condos with a minimum of 2 bedrooms. The last column is showing the % of sale price to list price.

All information is from the regional MLS

The following data reflects oceanfront Condos closed sales in Broward County, which includes Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale etc, from May 4,2009 through August 2, 2009.  Criteria used includes only buildings built after 2000 and condos with a minimum of 2 bedrooms.   The last column is showing the % of sale price to list price.

All information is from the regional MLS

n Broward County, The Ritz Carlton,  had a closed sale of a large 3073 sq. ft. oceanfront condo for $1,800,000, asking price $3 million, 40% off asking price.   Not surprising, there are the most sales at the Beach Club in Hallandale Beach.

I was working with a buyer today at One Bal Harbour. The Regents Hotel sign has been replaced.    As reported by the Miami Herald, a private group, ElCom Hotel & Spa, bought the common areas of the hotel for $12 million and 51 unsold condo-hotel units.

The owners of ElCom, executives with hotel backgrounds, have renamed the property the One Bal Harbour Hotel. Regent left another condo-hotel, in South Beach, two years ago.

Luxury Oceanfront Condos along the coast in South Florida vary immensly.  Each building has its own character as does each neighborhood and each city, and those variances are reflected in the price.   Worldwide attention is focused on oceanfront condos in South Florida as the price swings have been reported around the world.   To summerize our market we like to provide our readership with statistics and data.

I have selected 7 very different luxury oceanfront condos along the coast to take a look at. These 7 condominiums are all relatively new and represent a cross section of oceanfront condos along the coast.   Continuum in South Beach, Canyon Ranch in Miami Beach, One Bal Harbour in Bal Harbour, Turnberry Ocean Colony in Sunny Isles, Ocean Palms in Hollywood, The Palms in Fort Lauderdale, and The Excelsior in Boca Raton.

The information provided addresses, number of closed sales, $ per square foot, average $ of asking price, number of units currently under contract (pending), and total number of units for sale in each building.

I thought it would be helpful to offer a perspective on how much oceanfront condos are actually selling for in different areas, as compared to the asking price.  The sales data below is provided for Miami Beach oceanfront condos, Bal Harbour-Sunny Isles oceanfront condos, Hollywood-Hallandale Oceanfront condos, and Fort Lauderdale Oceanfront condos.

As you will see, Miami Beach and Bal Harbour are prices are holding strongly, whereby Hallandale Hollywod is showing much greater flexibility.  In Miami Beach oceanfront condos that sold in the last three months averaged a selling price of 90% of the asking price.  In the Bal Harbour- Sunny Isles area sold prices averaged around 91% for the last three months.  The real discounts are in Hollywood and Hallandale Beach. Buyers  purchased condos for 80% of the asking price.   As I have written in a previous posts detailing per square foot price, the per square foot prices in South Florida are also the lowest in Hollywood Hallandale.   Finally, Fort Lauderdale purchase prices averaged 84% off the asking price.

 

Miami Beach oceanfront condos on average are selling for around 90% of the asking price.  

 

The chart below will has the same criteria for Sunny Isles- Bal Harbour Oceanfront Condos.   

 

 

The information below is for Hollywood-Hallandale Beach oceanfront condos.

 

And finally, here is the data for Fort Lauderdale oceanfront condos.

 

Of course, depending on the individual situation opportunities will vary.  After analyzing the averages, I wanted to find the “outliers” and I know they are out there.  There are those break out sales that defy the averages….

Fisher Island is a private island only accessible by private ferry and helicopter.  According to Forbes.com, Fisher Island FL tied for first place in their list of 500 most expensive zip codes in the U.S.  Well, in November there was a 5900 square foot penthouse offered for $12,000,000.  It sold for $8,000,000.  That is 38% off asking price !

In Bal Harbour, there were two.  Majestic Tower, 2160 square feet, asking price $1,700,000.  This 16 th floor unit sold for $1,400,000. 17% discount.  One Bal Harbour, a 2114 square foot flow through unit had an asking price of $1,465,000.  It sold at $1,125,000. A 23% discount !

In Sunny Isles, Turnberry Ocean Colony, a 2235 square foot unit on the 17th floor had an asking price of $1,525,000.  It sold for $1,200,000. 79% of asking price.

In Hollywood Hallandale at the Diplomat Residences,  an 04 unit was offered at $1,250,000 and sold for $850,000. 68% of asking price.  

In Fort lauderdale, at L’Hermitage, a 2845 square foot unit had an asking price of $1,799,999.  It sold for $1,200,000. That is a 67% of asking price.

Just a foot note, this information is to provide  readers with a perspective on the market.  Each buying opportunity and each building has its own unique situation.

Turnberry Ocean Colony North, Turnberry Ocean Colony South,  Acqualina and One Bal Harbour are luxury oceanfront condomimiums in Sunny Isles and Bal Harbour.  All three properties are relatively new.  Following our previous post, we wanted to provide our readers with a market profile for select buildings in the Sunny Isles Bal Harbour area. 

Certain markers of interest, Acqualina has the lowest percentage of units on the market, only 12%. One Bal Harbour had the lowest priced sale at $1.2 million as well as the lowest price per square foot sale of $601 per square foot.  Turnberry Ocean Colony has had 11 closed reported closed sales in the last 6 months One Bal Harbour had 22 closed sales.  When One Bal Harbour units closed there were many investors that put it right back on the market.  

Closed sale data is based on information from the last 6 months.    

South Florida newer condominiums have been averaging around 20% of the building on the market for the past year.  That number hasn’t increased in fact, as I mentioned in a previous post, inventory numbers appear to be on the decline.  

Several large scale investors such as Jorge Perez and others are stepping in to take advantage of current market conditions and attractive prices.  Real estate will have its ups and downs but unlike other investment instruments it is real property !

 

 

 

Turnberry Ocean Colony

Through my research I come across “break out” properties. I call these South Florida Oceanfront properties “break out” properties because they stand out from the inventory.  Certain properties that I identify are very  unique and presents attractive buying opportunities.

Criteria that I analyze that makes these “break out” properties unique can include some or all of the following:

Building Quality & Amenities

• View
• Square footage
• Number of bedrooms
• Price per square foot
• Price
• Comparables
• Location
• Uniqueness

 

I have found that when I have identified these properties, they always sell rather quickly. So even though the Average Days on the Market for most waterfront condos is about 156 days, these opportunities sell considerably quicker than that.

Here is an example. Most recently, at the Diplomat Residences in Hollywood, there was a 3,000 square foot direct oceanfront unit that was being offered for $1,199,000 on a high floor.  We can pretty much assume that it sold for less than asking price. Comparable units were going for $1.9 million a year ago.  This particular unit has gone to contract.  The next somewhat comparable unit is being offered today for $1.5 million.

I have identified “break out” opportunities in several extraordinary buildings, including Ocean Palms, Turnberry Ocean Colony, One Bal Harbour and  the Continuum in South Beach just to name a few.  They are out there!

This is such an exciting time for the oceanfront condo market!

In today’s market there have been great buying opportunities in luxury oceanfront condos as they go through their completion phase. Buyer’s/investors that bought in several years ago, that do not want to close will offer their units at deeply discounted rates. Furthermore the developer will take back some units that they do not want to keep in inventory and they will price these units aggressively as well. This scenario is exactly what transpired recently at One Bal Harbour and at Canyon Ranch. Timing was exactly right for savvy buyers that took advantage of these opportunities and bought in to magnificent oceanfront condos at very attractive prices.

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I anticipate that at the Mei, there will be similiar buying opportunities as well.

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Prices at the Mei Start at the low $700’s. There will only be a total of 134 residences, 8 per floor. with a total of 22 floors.

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The Mei located at 58th and Collins in Miami Beach is in the premium area of “Millionaire’s Row” . Nearby oceanfront condos include Bath Club, Canyon Ranch, Aqua and the Fountainbleu. Mei is midway between South Beach and Bal Harbour and minutes from the airport expressway.

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Mei is a contemporary Asian influenced design. Created by the world renowned Hirsch/Bedner team of interior design, creators of the Mandarin Oriental Hotels around the world. Mei’s elegant entrance lobby is complemented by a unique Tea Lounge and Library, as well as the resident’s Spa and Fitness Center which leads to the oceanfront pool.

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Detailed Information on the Mei In Miami Beach at 5875 Collins Avenue, click here.

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We receive a constant stream of phone calls from buyers from all over the world that are interested in purchasing oceanfront condos. There are buyers who are seizing the moment so to speak, and stepping in to take advantage of the great opportunities out there right now.

Are there opportunities? You bet there are and I have been in situations, where once we identified a great unit at a great price, other buyers were also putting offers in on the same units.

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There are varying degrees of motivation by sellers in all price ranges. There are some units in building less than 2 years old that the original developer still owns that now are very motivated to sell. There are units that are being sold by investors that are several hundred thousand dollars less than what they paid for it. Each situation is different but the opportunities are there. The units that are available under these circumstances include the most desirable oceanfront floor plans in premier buildings.

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All I can say is that if there is a desire to own an oceanfront condo in South Florida, at this point in time, you can get the best of the best at deeply discounted prices. When the media says…”We are now at the bottom and the market is going to turn around”… the best units in the A rated luxury buildings will be long gone!!!