Ft. Lauderdale units keep coming
Despite declining sales volume and prices in Fort Lauderdale, residential developers continue to seek and obtain approval for new developments. On a single day in mid-March, developers received approval for 629 condo or rental apartment units in the city. All of the projects had been approved a few years ago but stalled, and will now move forward.
Two condo developments, Coconut Grove Residences and Bamboo Flats, opened their doors last month, and construction of several large projects in the city is currently underway, including the 172-unit project Sapphire, which topped out last month, and the rental complex Satori. Some developers in the city are shifting projects from condos to rentals, which are easier to finance.
Palm Beach mansion seeks $81.5M
Billionaire philanthropist Sidney Kimmel is selling his Palm Beach mansion at 1236 Ocean Boulevard for an asking price of $81.5 million. The 18,000-square-foot waterfront house was designed by architect Thierry W. Despont. Kimmel paid $5.5 million for the property in 1993 and demolished the previously existing house. The estate’s first open house, in early March, was so exclusive that its Corcoran Group sales team invited only 25 buyers’ brokers.
Florida’s foreclosures tripled in 2007
Florida’s rate of foreclosure tripled in the fourth quarter of 2007 from the previous year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The recent subprime crisis has hit Florida and California harder than most states, the association said. The two states accounted for 30 percent of new foreclosures, while they represented only 21 percent of outstanding loans.
More than 5 percent of loans in Florida were over 90 days delinquent, trailing only four states in the percentage of home loans that were “seriously delinquent” or in foreclosure.
Bal Harbour complex underway
The Related Group and Starwood Resorts & Hotels have broken ground on the three-tower, 27-story hotel-condo project at 9701 Collins Avenue in Bal Harbour. The project, called St. Regis Resort & Residences, will have 268 condos, 36 hotel-condos and 183 hotel rooms on 9 acres. The project’s sell-out value is estimated at more than $1 billion. The all-glass tower complex, which is expected to be completed in 2010, will also hold a 15,000-square-foot spa and a fitness center.
Insurers cut homeowner policies
Thousands of Floridians will lose their homeowner insurance policies as insurance companies continue to cancel them or shift their policyholders to other underwriters. Insurance companies plan to drop thousands of Florida policy holders this year, claiming that covering damages to homes in Florida has become too risky a business.
State Farm and Nationwide, among the largest homeowner insurers in Florida, indicated they would cut a combined 90,000 policies nationwide beginning this year. The state-backed Citizens Property Insurance, along with some small new private insurers, are stepping in to fill the gap.
Developer buys half of Dolphins
Developer Stephen Ross, chairman of New York-based Related Companies, is purchasing a half-stake in the Miami Dolphins from owner Wayne Huizenga for $550 million. Related, developer of Tower Condominium at CityPlace in West Palm Beach and other projects, has 12 properties total in South Florida. Pending the NFL’s approval of the transaction, Ross will acquire half ownership of the team, as well as Dolphin Stadium and some developable land nearby. Huizenga has announced plans to invest around $250 million in stadium renovations, expected to be completed by 2009.
Oversupply drives down condo prices
An estimated 25,000 condos were on the market in Miami-Dade County as of the beginning of March, according to the Multiple Listing Service, and 12,000 to 15,000 are expected to come online in the next 18 to 24 months. With a rate of about 10,000 condos sold per year, the oversupply has brought prices down as much as 40 percent in Miami-Dade County.
Although condo sales in Florida were down an average of 27 percent in 2007 from the year before, the price drops are expected to attract investment and second-home buyers from elsewhere in the U.S. and abroad.
Ft. Lauderdale OKs street fixes
The city of Fort Lauderdale has approved a plan for streetscape improvements near the downtown projects of two developers. Avenue Lofts was paid $365,900 for street work around Foundry Lofts and Mill Lofts, while Flagler Junction was paid $230,600 for work near the Bamboo Flats. The city agreed to use property tax funds collected in the northwest Fort Lauderdale/Progresso/Flagler Village area.
Boca Raton developer sues bank
A bank is being sued by Florida developers for revealing details of a secret land deal in Boca Raton. The lawsuit, initiated by developer Greg Talbott, seeks $180 million in damages from Fifth Third Bank and Mission Capital Advisors. According to Talbott, the banks wrongly exposed a $50 million deal to sell four plots of his land in downtown Boca Raton to another developer, Tom Crocker.
The lawsuit alleges breaches of confidentiality and fiduciary duty and invasion of privacy, saying that the bank and capital advisory revealed the price Talbott is willing to pay for the land, jeopardizing the deal.