AvalonBay, Adam Marcuvitz Bet on South Florida Multifamily

Investors are continuing to bet big on South Florida’s multifamily market, with three recent acquisitions across South Miami and Fort Lauderdale led by a record-setting development site purchase.

AvalonBay Communities paid $22 million for a full city block development site, at 5920 Sunset Drive to 5946 South Dixie Highway, where it plans 251 apartments. The deal broke down to $90,000 per unit, the highest per-unit pricing ever paid for a South Miami development site, according to a press release.

AvalonBay acquired the 1.2-acre site from longtime owner Robins Plaza, LLC in an off-market transaction. Virgilio Fernandez of Cushman & Wakefield represented the buyer in the deal.

The acquisition will clear the way for Avalon South Miami II, AvalonBay’s second project in the city. The 16-story mixed-use development will include units ranging from studios to three-bedroom apartments, about 17,700 square feet of ground-floor retail space, a pool, a rooftop lounge and 394 parking spaces. The site, which has 300 feet of waterfrontage, is one of the few remaining full-block development sites in downtown South Miami, the release said.

The historic corner building at 5900 to 5904 Sunset Drive was not included in the sale.

In Fort Lauderdale, investor Adam Marcuvitz of Marcus & Millichap bought two apartment properties for a combined $12.8 million, including a Flagler Village redevelopment site he plans to continue operating while waiting for development conditions to improve.

Through his recently launched real estate investment company, Midas Equities LLC, Marcuvitz paid $8.9 million for a 1.1-acre site at 610 to 622 Northeast 1st Avenue and 629 Northeast 2nd Avenue in Flagler Village. The deal worked out to about $280 per square foot.

Marcuvitz acquired the site, which includes 43 aging apartments, from an entity associated with Caldwell Cooper and Susan Cooper. He financed part of the deal with a $4.4 million seller-carried mortgage. Adam Docktor of Native Realty brought the buyer, and Jaime Sturgis of Native Realty brought the seller.

The site has redevelopment potential for 200 to 210 units, Marcuvitz said.

On the same day, Marcuvitz closed on a $3.9 million half-acre site with 18 apartment units at 1545 Miami Road in Fort Lauderdale’s Harbordale neighborhood. The deal worked out to $216,700 per unit. Marcuvitz acquired the 1973-built apartment building from Ronald Palamara, who paid $1.5 million for it in 2003. Marcuvitz financed part of the acquisition through a $1.9 million seller-carried mortgage.

“We’re in a soft place right now in the market, but I’m betting that that’s going to change now that some of the deliveries are starting to taper off,” Marcuvitz told The Real Deal. He said he plans to either enter into a joint venture with a developer or sell the property when more multifamily supply has been absorbed.

After a post-pandemic building boom flooded the market with new supply, multifamily deliveries are tapering off and development is slowing across South Florida, according to CBRE.