TRD’s Daily Digest: Everything South Florida real estate needs to know today

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A former tech entrepreneur turned spec home developer sold a waterfront mansion and lot on North Bay Road for a combined $35.4 million, marking a record sale in Miami Beach this year. Ami Shashoua sold the spec mansion at 6360 North Bay Road for $23.85 million, and the lot next door at 6342 North Bay Road sold for $11.55 million, according to Redfin. The buyer of both bayfront properties is from California, according to a source familiar with the deal. The buyer’s plans for the lot are unclear, but he didn’t want anyone else buying it and building there, the source said. [TRD]

A week after the Miami City Commission approved plans to build a 24-story tower on the site of the former Babylon Apartments, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has vetoed the decision. Meanwhile, land use attorney Jeffrey Bercow, who is representing the developer, former Spaghetti Western star Francisco Martinez-Celeiro, filed an ethics complaint accusing the mayor’s legal counsel of illegally lobbying on the zoning issue, according to the Miami Herald. [TRD]

As Sears works its way through bankruptcy proceedings, Seritage Growth Properties posted a nearly $26 million net loss in the second quarter, according to its earnings report. That’s compared to a $10.6 million loss in the second quarter of 2018. For the first half of the year, its net loss totaled $36.8 million. [TRD]

Demand for instant home-buying has started to pay dividends for Redfin. The Seattle-based discount brokerage said second-quarter revenue rose 39 percent to $198 million, beating expectations. The company’s net loss widened to $12.6 million, compared to $3.2 million, thanks to a bump in marketing expenses as it poured money into national ads touting a slew of new ventures, including instant home-buying. [TRD]

The parent company of Yeshiva Elementary School paid $6.8 million for a shuttered charter school site in North Miami. Aspira of Florida sold the now-closed 53,685-square-foot Aspira Raul Arnaldo Martinez charter school at 13300 Memorial Highway. The school in North Miami will be an extension of Yeshiva Elementary School’s existing campus in Miami Beach. Colliers International South Florida’s Achikam Yogev represented Aspira of Florida in the sale. [TRD]

The owners of the Red South Beach Hotel near the Faena District are looking to sell. The 110-room, seven-story hotel at 3010 Collins Avenue in Miami Beach hit the market for $41.5 million, according to listing broker Susan Gale of One Sotheby’s International Realty. That’s $377,273 per key. The Red hotel was built in the 1930s and includes a pool, restaurant and bar and fitness room. [TRD]

Blackstone bought a mostly vacant Pompano Beach industrial site for $9.6 million as the private equity giant continues to target South Florida. Blackstone bought the 9.2-acre site at Southwest 13th Court for $1.04 million per acre, records show. The firm bought the property from Edwin B. Stimpson Company. [TRD]

Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein sparred over the Florida estate of nursing home mogul Abe Gosman in 2004. Gosman originally purchased from Epstein’s close friend and mentor Leslie Wexner. But after Gosman went bankrupt, Trump out-bid Epstein for the property, and flipped it just four years later for $95 million. [Vanity Fair]

WeWork has been negotiating for up to $6 billion in financing, but there’s a catch. The financing is contingent on the We Company raising $3 billion when it goes public. JPMorgan Chase has reportedly already promised $800 million. [Bloomberg]

The city of Miami Beach committed $67 million to revitalize Lincoln Road. The decision came at a commission meeting this week. The city’s vote will allow Lincoln Road to begin the initial phases of its long-planned James Corner Field Operations’ Master Plan, created by the lead designer of New York’s High Line.

The highest-priced home in West Coconut Grove sold for $1.3 million. The home at 3349 Elizabeth Street in Miami is among a collection of seven other homes in the developer’s Grove Palms. Michael and Jaimee Light of Douglas Elliman represented the seller, the developer Metronomic.

A well-known Miami real estate broker died. Linette Guerra, managing broker of Miami-based La Playa Properties Group, died of a heart attack on Thursday at 51, according to the company. Guerra focused on Miami condo sales and was often featured in The Week in Luxury, The Real Deal’s weekly roundup of the top condo sales in Miami-Dade County. [TRD] 

Marcus & Millichap’s Joseph Thomas and Summer Grove Apartments (Credit: Apartments.com)

The 116-unit Summer Grove Apartments near Tamiami sold for $22.5 million. Ralgo Coral Way LLC, a personal trust managed by Amy and Richard Gonzalez, bought the apartment complex at 10331 Southwest 24th Street. Caesuvest, a Florida company managed by Guillermo Hernández Roura, sold the property, which consists of 12 two-story apartment buildings encompassing more than 93,000 rentable square feet and 5 acres of land. [TRD] 

Saudis backed Colony Capital’s digital infrastructure deal, according to a new report. Colony Capital, led by Trump-ally Thomas Barrack, reportedly partnered up with a sovereign wealth fund from Saudi Arabia as it sought to invest in digital infrastructure after the 2016 presidential election, according to Bloomberg. [TRD]

Compiled by Ina Cordle