A recovering job market is helping the West Palm Beach apartment market show signs of life, with the area’s vacancy rate continuing to drop, according to Marcus & Millichap. West Palm Beach’s rents also rose for the ninth consecutive quarter, as an expanding number of property owners are successfully imposing higher rents as lease roll over. [more]

Miami continues to be the strongest apartment market in South Florida, according to a second-quarter report from Marcus & Millichap. With plummeting vacancies and the “gradual restoration of rents to former peaks,” Miami-Dade County is leading the tri-county area, in large part due to increased tenant demand. Further expansion in service employment will help lead to a projected 60-basis-point decline in the vacancy rate this year to 4.1 percent. [more]

Improved hiring and reduced construction of new space should mean a downward trend for Fort Lauderdale’s office vacancy rate, according to a report from Marcus & Millichap. Vacancy in the area is projected to fall by 80 basis points to 19.3 percent this year, after a 60-basis-point drop in 2011. Rents are expected to rise by 1.2 percent his year, up to $25.78 per square foot. [more]

55 Miracle Mile

The 15-story 55 Miracle Mile mixed-use project in Coral Gables has been listed for $15 million, according to Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services. The price represents an average of $374 per square foot. “Miracle Mile is the main corridor through the downtown central business district of Coral Gables,” said Douglas Mandel, vice president for investments at Marcus & Millichap’s Fort Lauderdale office. “It is a world-class, pedestrian-friendly shopping, entertaining and dining district.” The property, which was built in 2004, includes tenants such as Tarpon Bend and Cibo Wine Bar. — Alexander Britell

An apartment building in Miami

Thanks in part to a sizable international buyer pool, Miami-Dade County’s apartment market will continue to see strong tenant demand and decreasing vacancy, according to a report from Marcus & Millichap. The firm predicts that “solid rental housing demand” will reduce Miami’s vacancy rate by 50 basis points to 4.4 percent, following an 80-basis-point drop in 2011. The low vacancy will also support a 3.6 percent jump in asking rents to $1,124 per month. [more]

A Miami-based limited liability company has sold a 60,497-square-foot shopping center anchored by Babies “R” Us at 15625-45 North Kendall Drive in Kendall, Miami for $10.2 million, or $169 per square foot. Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services brokered the sale.

Drew Kristol and Kirk Olson, senior associates in the firm’s Miami office, represented the seller. Marcus & Marcus & Millichap also represented the buyer, also a Miami Beach-based LLC. TRD [more]