Citing construction defects and potential future flooding issues, a Los Angeles buyer wants to kill his deal to buy a top-floor unit in a new Bay Harbor Islands boutique condominium.
Henros LLC sued the developer of Bay Harbor One last week in Miami-Dade Circuit Court to nullify the $684,312 purchase of unit 806 in the eight-story building at 1100 100th Street. Henros, led by Juan Tyberg, is also seeking the return of $385,000 in cash deposits.
Launched five years ago by Bay Harbor Islands-based developer LDG in collaboration with Team 18, another Bay Harbor developer, Bay Harbor One features 36 units, a roof-top amenity deck with a pool, lounge area, private cabana suites and a social area. Unit sizes range from 1,436 square feet to 1,576 square feet, and pricing is between the $600,000s and the $900,000s, according to early marketing materials for the project.
Richard Bergman, the attorney for the development entity Bay Harbor Islands I LLC, said every floor in the building has received a certificate of occupancy, and the common elements have a temporary certificate of occupancy.
Bergman said he had not seen Henros’ lawsuit but chalked it up to buyer’s remorse. “As far as my client is concerned, the building is fine,” Bergman said. “My client will absolutely, 100 percent, defend very vigorously against this complaint.”
David P. Reiner, Henros’ lawyer, said Bay Harbor One has serious errors and construction defects. “The project simply wasn’t completed and presented in the condition my client expected it to be in,” Reiner said.
Henros alleges the developer falsely claimed Bay Harbor One was substantially completed on Dec. 11, 2019 and attempted to schedule the closing. Bay Harbor Islands I also allegedly failed to disclose the building and the unit Henros was purchasing had substantial construction defects, the lawsuit states.
For instance, Bay Harbor One’s developer failed to inform Henros that the building allegedly suffered from water intrusion and was constructed well below the base flood elevation level set by FEMA and other building code standards. The developer allegedly had knowledge of these problems and still collected deposits from Henros, the complaint states.
The construction defects include standing water in the garage, water intrusion in a service elevator, defective balcony sliding glass doors, poor workmanship in the balconies and poor workmanship in the concrete masonry of the garage exteriors, according to the lawsuit.
In January, the developer’s law firm sent Henros correspondence demanding the closing be scheduled, without addressing the construction defects identified by the buyer. The same month, Reiner notified the developer’s project manager that Henros was canceling the purchase agreement and demanded a return of the deposits.
According to Miami-Dade property records, the developers paid $2.5 million in 2013 for the vacant parcels that make up the Bay Harbor Islands development site. LDG, led by Michel Leibovich is also developing the townhouse project Palm Villas in Bay Harbor Islands.