Developer James Curnin sold his waterfront La Gorce Island mansion for $60 million, after he and his wife, Jennifer, spent about four years building the Miami Beach estate.
Selling the home wasn’t part of the plan, but brokers were “constantly reaching out,” and then the right offer came in. The sale, which closed in March to a hidden buyer, is an indication of the strong demand for newly built, high-end homes in South Florida.
Curnin, a spec builder, has been focusing on his multifamily developments, but he wishes he had more spec homes to sell. “Anything north of $20 [million], $25 million, as long as it’s done well and in a good location, the demand is very strong,” Curnin said.
Yet, a scarcity of development sites is holding Curnin back. “The product I want to build, the land is almost non-existent,” he said. “The margins have shrunk, and I’m not seeing land that makes sense.”
Land costs continue to remain too high for many spec home developers, but deals are getting done. Lenders are still bullish on luxury spec home development across South Florida since early 2024, despite the overall market slowdown. Popular neighborhoods include Miami Beach, Coconut Grove, Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton. Buyers want turnkey homes, lenders say.
For spec developers, teardowns are often the answer. Todd Michael Glaser entered into a contract earlier this year to buy developer Sonny Kahn’s waterfront home at 5490 North Bay Road for a whopping $105 million. That closing has been extended to the end of July.
Glaser plans to build a new spec mansion on the 2.3-acre site that could hit the market for about $300 million. Construction would take about 14 months.
Eugene Rutenberg, CEO of Celestial Fund, is among the lenders active in spec home lending. His company recently syndicated capital with family offices and other funds for loans totaling $35 million for spec homes in Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton.
Boca Raton-based Cicardo Development, led by Anthony Cicardo and Tim Schirripa, is asking a combined $80 million for three properties. The most expensive one is a 10,400-square-foot, seven-bedroom home at 1400 West Lake Drive in Fort Lauderdale, asking $39 million with Compass agent Chad Carroll. The Harbor Beach home is decked out with a gym, office, rooftop lounge, 250 feet of deep water dockage and a resort-style pool “oasis,” according to the listing. It’s under construction.
Another of the homes also is under construction: an 11,200-square-foot, six-bedroom and seven-bathroom mansion at 681 Golden Harbour Drive in Boca Raton. Its price recently increased by half a million dollars, and now asking nearly $18 million. It’s on the market with Schirripa, who is also an agent.
Rutenberg started lending to spec home developers in late 2022. Unlike a bank, Celestial and its partners only lend to non-owner occupied properties and offer rates that are higher, about 10 to 11 percent, compared to mortgage rates in the 7 percent range. Celestial provides non-recourse loans, whereas banks are typically offering recourse loans. Recourse means the borrower is personally liable.
Rutenberg said the business has been “steady Eddie” and he’s betting that that continues.
“It’s no secret that condo sales have been a little problematic,” Rutenberg said. “Despite the amenities [offered in a condo building], there’s no way to replace having your own pad, your own space, your own personal guard. People like space and having their own way of things, particularly South American buyers.”
Market forces
J.C. de Ona, president of Centennial Bank’s Southeast Florida division, said the challenges plaguing residential real estate have less of an effect on buyers of luxury spec homes. (These issues include high interest rates, insurance premiums and construction costs that are difficult to plan for, due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.)
Though demand is not as robust as it was, especially during the pandemic-induced frenzy, it’s still strong. “If somebody really wants a home, they’re not going to miss the opportunity in that level of client or asset. If they want it, they’re going to get it,” de Ona said.
Over the past four years, Centennial has lent developers roughly $200 million for homes it values at more than $400 million, de Ona said. Centennial is the lender for about 10 projects in the tri-county region, with most concentrated in Miami-Dade County. Some are in Pinecrest, Coconut Grove and Coral Gables.
The Boschetti Group, with seven homes under construction in Miami Beach and Coconut Grove, is among Centennial’s clients. In recent weeks buyers have signed or are about to sign contracts for houses and townhouses that Boschetti is developing, said broker Maurice Boschetti, son of CEO Jose Boschetti.
“Everyone wants to build spec homes because the demand is there,” Maurice said.
Julian Johnston, a top Miami Beach agent with the Corcoran Group, said few spec homes are still available for sale. The ones that are available may be overpriced. The strongest prices are between $15 million and $30 million, he said.
“Everything that’s being finished is selling pretty quickly,” he said, referring to new construction.
Developers who are still far from breaking ground on land they recently purchased aren’t as concerned about tariffs affecting the price of materials, Johnston said.
Still, de Ona of Centennial said he’s eying construction costs. Centennial’s loan-to-value ratio is typically 50 percent, which gives the bank a bit of a cushion. It also typically will wait to fund a project until the builder has its permits in hand.
“If the market softens, will the client be able to lower the price point and still make money, just not as much?” he said. “We haven’t seen any [spec projects] where they’re losing money. But that’s always a possibility.”
Zack Simkins, managing director of Miami-based Vaster, said developers that took advantage to acquire prime sites during the pandemic are benefiting the most. “[Now], developers with strong capital are realizing great development opportunities, closing [with] cash and taking out financing after,” he said.
Vaster lent about $150 million across South Florida since 2024 for spec home construction or renovations to existing homes, much of it bridge financing.
In March, Vaster provided $25 million in construction financing to Kort Development for two planned bayfront homes in Surfside: a nearly 14,000-square-foot mansion at 9540 Bay Drive, and a nearly 10,000-square-foot home nearby at 600 88th Street.
The former could mark the most expensive single-family home on the market in Surfside once it lists, at an expected price of more than $25 million.
Some developers may not succeed, as a result of a trickier market, Simkins said. But he’s still confident about demand for luxury homes.
“Buyers at the high end,” he said, “are more impervious to economic uncertainty than the others.”
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