Florida International University will be creating a new School of Real Estate thanks to longtime Miami developer Tibor Hollo, the Miami Herald reported. The program, which will be called the Tibor & Sheila Hollo School of Real Estate, is being funded by a gift of $2.5 million from Hollo. [more]

Floridians are among those who stand to benefit from home loan discounts being distributed by Bank of America — some of which are in the six-figure range, the Palm Beach Post reported. In fact, the average discount across the country for the first 5,000 homeowners in the program was $145,000. “I’m really shocked and don’t quite know what to make of that number,” said Ken Johnson, a real estate economist at Florida International University. “If they are trying to get balances so they are no longer underwater, that sounds very much like Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach, where we lost 50 percent value.” [Palm Beach Post]

Florida International University has signed a lease for three additional floors at 1101 Brickell Avenue. The new deal will double the school’s space at the downtown Miami office tower, which is owned and managed by Florida East Coast Realty. FIU will occupy a total of 60,373 square feet between 1101 Brickell’s north and south towers. The new space will house two classrooms and new reception space. [more]

Sales have been skyrocketing in the tri-county area of late, but prices
are still staying low, according to the Miami Herald. Despite a sales record that is stronger than most
in the country, South Florida’s home prices are actually falling faster
than the national average. “It’s an odd time,” said EWM President Ron
Shuffield. “We’re able to say we’re selling more homes and condos than
we’ve ever sold in history, but at the same time 61 percent of our sales
are short sales and foreclosures.”  [more]

Housing values crashed, renting became more popular and many in South
Florida saw their income and wealth drop. Those are a few of the
revelations in new data from the Census Bureau. Miami saw its population
increase to about 433,000. “A lot of people are moving to Miami,” said
Dario Gonzalez, a researcher at Florida International University’s Metropolitan Center. According to
the 2009 data, the typical household income in Miami-Dade County decreased to $63,000 from $67,000. Broward’s income fell to $69,000. [Miami
Herald]

[more]