Edgewater Opportunity Zone site hits the market, FHA will back more condo loans: Daily digest

A daily round up of South Florida real estate news, deals and more for August 15, 2019

Every day, The Real Deal rounds up South Florida’s biggest real estate news, from breaking news and scoops to announcements and deals. We update this page at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. ET. Please send any tips or deals to tips@therealdeal.com

This page was last updated at 4 p.m.

 

Alex Zylberglait and 2650 Biscayne Boulevard (Credit: Google Maps)

Alex Zylberglait and 2650 Biscayne Boulevard (Credit: Google Maps)

Edgewater Opportunity Zone site hits the market for $14 million. A 30,000-square-foot Opportunity Zone site in the burgeoning Edgewater neighborhood of Miami just hit the market for $13.5 million. A developer could build a 36-story condo, apartment or commercial building on the development site and gain significant tax advantages thanks to the Opportunity Zone designation. [TRD]

 

Miami River apartments sell amid development boom. Miami real estate investor Jorge Ariel Lopez paid $7 million for an apartment building on the Miami River, signaled growing demand for properties along the waterway. Lopez bought the 42-unit building at 1160 Northwest North River Drive for $166,666 per unit, according to Fausto Commercial Realty. [TRD]

 

The Federal Housing Administration loosening rules around its condo loans

Government will back more condo loans amid cooling housing market. Amid a cooling housing market and growing concerns about a recession, the Trump administration is making it easier for first-time condo buyers to get a government-backed mortgage. The Federal Housing Administration is backing more loans for those first-time buyers, according to the Wall Street Journal. [TRD]

 

Apple is on the hunt for enormous Manhattan office space. Apple has joined tech giants like Facebook and Amazon in the competition to lock up prime blocks of large Manhattan office space. The Cupertino, California-based tech company is looking around Manhattan for somewhere between 200,000 square feet and 500,000 square feet for a new office, sources told The Real Deal. One source said the tech firm could take as much as 750,000 square feet. [TRD]

 

1745 James Avenue, Jorge Savloff and Marcelo Tenenbaum

1745 James Avenue, Jorge Savloff and Marcelo Tenenbaum

Menin, Galbut sold a shuttered South Beach hotel to Blue Road for $14 million. Companies tied to Menin Hospitality and Russell Galbut’s Crescent Heights sold the shuttered Sanctuary Hotel in Miami Beach for $14.4 million to Blue Road. Sanctuary South Beach Inc., Sanctuary SB Properties LLC, Sanctuary RonRuss Properties and MJK Group LLC sold the 32-key condo-hotel at 1745 James Avenue to Jorge Savloff and Marcelo Tenenbaum’s Blue Road, according to Marcus & Millichap. [TRD]

 

WeWork’s IPO filing reveals a 100% male board. The We Company’s IPO filing, which promoted a “culture of inclusivity,” revealed the company has a fully male board. The WeWork parent company filed S-1 papers Wednesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for its imminent IPO, expected to take place as early as next month. Of its seven board members, three were appointed at the behest of investors, Benchmark, Hony Capital and SoftBank, according to Boss Betty, a female-focused business news site. [TRD]

 

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Developers of a Hudson Valley project say local leaders want to keep Hasidic Jews out. Tension is brewing in Chester, New York, where developers have accused local leaders of blocking a 431-unit housing project to keep out Hasidic Jews. The developer says the town has delayed the project, and is seeking $100 million in damages. [NYT]

 

Morgan Stanley lost the lead in WeWork’s IPO financing. The co-working giant rejected Morgan Stanley’s pitch to be the top underwriter on its impending IPO, so the financial giant pulled back from the deal entirely. [Bloomberg]

 

Councilmember Margaret Chin says hostels will kill Airbnb. The legislation to regulate affordable, communal accommodations was floated earlier this week, and Chin says it will pose a significant challenge to the Airbnb market. [Crain’s]

 

Mortgage rates have fallen again, and homeowners are jumping aboard the refinancing train. For home loans of $484,000 or less, the 30-year fixed-rate average dropped to 3.93 percent, according to CNN, citing the Mortgage Bankers Association. On bigger mortgages and on 15-year loans, rates were even lower. The drop triggered a 37 percent increase from the week before on home refinancings; it was almost triple the amount compared to one year ago. [TRD]

 

From left: Mark Okada and James Dondero

From left: Mark Okada and James Dondero

REIT paid $322M for Pembroke Pines multifamily property. In what will likely be the largest multifamily sale in South Florida this year, NexPoint Residential will pay $322 million for a 1,520-unit multifamily property in Pembroke Pines, the real estate investment trust announced this week. [TRD]

 

Lord Balfour Hotel

Henley bought an Ocean Drive hotel for $35 million. The U.S. arm of Henley, a United Kingdom-based private equity firm, closed on the acquisition of an Ocean Drive hotel with its partner, hotel startup Life House. Life House announced the $34.75 million purchase of the 81-key Lord Balfour Hotel at 350 Ocean Drive in Miami Beach on Thursday. [TRD]

 

Guards charged with keeping watch on Jeffrey Epstein were sleeping instead. The financier accused of sex trafficking reportedly went unchecked for three hours at the Metropolitan Correctional Center. After realizing their mistake, two corrections officers falsified log records. The pair were reportedly working consecutive days of overtime. [NYT]

 

Compiled by Keith Larsen