Miami’s Brickell and downtown

Competing visions for South Florida are fueling a building boom here, with starchitect skyscrapers rising over Biscayne Bay and ritzy hotels and name-brand condos crowding into the ocean-side suburbs north of Miami Beach. [more]

Homeowners have been hesitant to open their wallets for renovations, but a new study shows that spending on home improvements is set to accelerate through at least the third quarter of 2013, the New York Times reported. The projections reflect rising home sales and construction, and low financing costs, said Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures program at Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, which conducted the study. [more]

Office vacancy in Miami-Dade County reached 18.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to the latest MarketView from CBRE. That number was an improvement from a nearly 20 percent rate in the fourth quarter of 2011 — a 160 basis point decline. [more]

Stiles Construction, a division of Fort Lauderdale-based Stiles, has formed a new joint venture with the Seminole Tribe of Florida. The new venture, Seminole Develompent and Construction, will provide both partners with access to a range of real estate construction projects within the North American tribal network. [more]

A rendering of Bellini

The Bellini condominium on Aventura’s Williams Island will top off construction next week, the project announced. Bellini, which is the brainchild of developer Martin Margulies, is located at 4100 Williams Island Boulevard. It is located on what had been the last remaining undeveloped lot on the private island. The 24-story, 70-unit building is set for completion in May 2013. — Alexander Britell

The total dollar value of contracts for future construction in the Miami metro area has risen 46 percent for the year to date, according to a report from McGraw-Hill Construction. There is a total of $2.82 billion in contracts for future construction since the beginning of the year, up from $1.94 billion at the same time last year. Residential contracts have risen by 62 percent in the period, while nonresidential contracts have increased by 32 percent. — Alexander Britell

The 51,664-square-foot International Finance Bank building is now complete, according to Colliers International South Florida, which is representing the property. The LEED Gold-certified office and retail property is located at 777 SW 37th Avenue and SW 8 Street. Colliers’ Donna Abood and Matthew Anderson are handling the representation. “We expect to lease the property fairly quickly,” Abood said. International Finance Bank occupies 25,000 square feet at the property. — Alexander Britell

Construction at Bellini Williams Island

The Bellini Williams Island project in Aventura will top off construction in November, the Martin Margulies project has announced. Bellini, which recently unveiled its sales team of Elite International Realty and Only Best Properties, has pushed up its scheduled completion date to May 2013. The 24-story, 70-unit project recently completed its 14th floor. — Alexander Britell

The total volume of residential and nonresidential construction in South Florida this year represents a 44 percent increase compared to the same period last year, according to a report from McGraw-Hill Construction. There has been a total of $696 million in nonresidential construction contracts and $648.6 million in residential construction contracts on a cumulative basis for the year to date. Individually, residential construction is up 79 percent compared to 2011, while nonresidential has risen by 22 percent in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. — Alexander Britell

Construction in the U.S. dropped by a little more than 1 percent in February, according to data that measure the dollar value of the volume of construction performed nationwide, released by the U.S. Census Bureau today.

The $808.9 billion spent on construction in the U.S. was down 1.1 percent from December’s total of $818.1 billion. Of that, $527.29 million was spent privately, with $280.84 million spent on residential construction, relatively even from the amount spent in January — $246.39 million — and up 5.6 percent year-over-year, from $233.40 in February 2011. [more]