Canvas in Miami’s A&E District lowers deposits to 20%

513-unit building is 75% sold

Rendering of Canvas
Rendering of Canvas

A condo project in Miami’s Arts & Entertainment District just lowered deposit requirements in a bid to attract local residents.

NR Investments is developing Canvas, a 513-unit condo building under construction at 1630 Northeast First Avenue. The development is 75 percent presold and slated to open during the second quarter of next year, according to a press release.

NR Investments, led by principals Ron Gottesmann and Nir Shoshani, lowered the required deposit to 20 percent. In early 2016, the developers received conditional project approval from Fannie Mae, another step often used by developers to lure domestic buyers. Qualified domestic buyers would be able to get up to 97 percent financing if the unit is their primary home.

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Canvas hopes lower deposits will lure renters away from buildings in downtown Miami, where rents may exceed the mortgage payment on a unit. Other projects like Riva in Fort Lauderdale and Aria on the Bay have also lowered their requirements this year.

At Canvas, units start at $345,000 and 620 square feet, and go up to 1,100 square feet and $690,000. Fortune International Realty’s Jessika Gomez is handling sales. Sales began in October 2014.

Amenities will include sunrise and sunset pools, a fitness center, glass-enclosed racquetball court, spa and sauna treatment rooms, business center, and children’s playroom and lab.

The tower was designed by CFE Architects. NR Investments paid $7.2 million for 1.1-acre site, which it acquired through an October 2013 bankruptcy auction, and about $5 million in impact fees in 2015. It closed on a $70 million construction loan from Bank of the Ozarks last year. – Katherine Kallergis