The total sales volume of multifamily deals in South Florida may not set a new record this year, but per-unit and per-square-foot prices are already higher than the previous year, according to a new Cushman & Wakefield report.
From January to October, nearly 200 multifamily sales totaling $3.6 billion have closed in South Florida. For all of 2016, multifamily sales totaled $5.6 billion. Cushman is predicting that this year’s sales will set a new record for price per unit and per square foot. So far, both prices are seeing increases.
In Miami-Dade County, per-unit sales averaged nearly $200,000 for the first 10 months of 2017. In 2016, the average apartment unit sold for roughly $175,000. In Broward County, the price per unit averaged slightly under $200,000 and in Palm Beach County, it was about $225,000 per unit. That’s higher than the two counties’ 2016 average of $170,000 per apartment.
Blockbuster deals this year include the $135 million sale of the Manor at CityPlace Doral, which traded for $343,000 per unit, and the $134 million sale of Amaray Las Olas in Fort Lauderdale, which breaks down to $526,000 per apartment.
In Miami-Dade, the price per square foot averaged about $200, up from about $180 per square foot last year. In Palm Beach, multifamily deals averaged just under $240 per square foot, about $100 higher than the previous year. And in Broward, the average price per square foot remained the same at $140 per square foot.
For the first 10 months of the year, vacancy rates remained flat in Miami-Dade, at 5 percent, and Broward, at 6.3 percent, but increased slightly in Palm Beach County to 8 percent.
Since 2010, apartment rents have increased in South Florida, according to the report. Over the past five years, rents have increased by more than 20 percent in all three counties. Through October, rents in Miami-Dade were up 2.5 percent to nearly $1,300 a month, according to the report. In Broward, rents increased by 3.1 percent to about $1,400 a month, and in Palm Beach, rents increased 2.6 percent to $1,429, compared to the previous year.
More than 18,500 apartments are currently under construction in South Florida, according to the report. Despite the new deliveries, some experts expect rents to continue rising.