The median sales price for single-family homes in the Fort Lauderdale
metro area rose 5 percent last month, with the median condominium sales
price increasing 6 percent, according to data from the Miami Association
of Realtors. Condo sales jumped 21 percent last month, and
single-family sales rose 19 percent compared to August 2010. “Broward
County home sales and prices continue to rise, reflecting a healthy and
stable real estate market,” said Terri Bersach, 2011 president of the
Broward County Board of Governors of the Miami Association of Realtors. [more]

As expected, the Palm Beach County Commission has chosen the Related Companies as the developer for the long-awaited 400-room Palm Beach County Convention Center Hotel. Plans for a new hotel next to the convention center in West Palm Beach have failed to get off the ground on numerous occasions over the past three years. Most recently, a contract with developer Ocean Properties fell through after a federal investigation into alleged corruption in the deal. Related, which developed the massive CityPlace retail and entertainment center in Downtown West Palm Beach, was recommended for the deal by a county selection committee. Contract negotiations and financing arrangements between Related and Palm Beach County are expected to take four to six months. Once built, the hotel will operate under the Hilton Hotels brand. TRD

FaulknerUSA, the development firm once slated to build a 1,000-room
Hilton Hotel next to the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, will
get roughly $2 million back from the county after threatening to
sue for two years’ worth of project costs. The county cut ties with
Faulkner and Hilton Hotels last month after years of delays and a
failed attempt by Hilton to replace Faulkner as its development
partner. Faulkner, which has recently been plagued by a variety of
legal and financial woes, said it had already spent more than $3
million on the convention hotel in the past two years. Broward
Commissioners agreed to reimburse Faulkner for its deposit plus
interest. [Sun Sentinel]

Developer Palmetto Hospitality has opened a five-story, 114-room Homewood Suites at 2455 Metrocentre Blvd., near Interstate 95. This is the 280th location for the hotel chain, which was launched in
1989 and has another 120 hotels in the development pipeline. The brand
is part of McLean, Va.-based Hilton Worldwide. Demand has remained steady in the upscale extended stay hotel segment, said Denise Brockington, Homewood’s general manager, adding that the new property helps to fill a need for value in the West Palm Beach area. [GlobeSt]