It feels good to be back. This stuff is in my blood. I focus on a very specific niche of Miami luxury real estate: Miami Beach and Indian Creek luxury real estate. This market takes me from South Beach to the three pill-shaped islands — Star, Palm and Hibiscus Islands:
Miami Beach Waterfront Estates

  • Venetian Islands
  • North Bay Road (lower, middle, upper)
  • Sunset Islands
  • Mid-beach waterfront
  • Pinetree & Flamingo
  • La Gorce Island
  • Allison Island (residential side)
  • Indian Creek Island

I don’t include Normandy Village or the town of Surfside in waterfront real estate sales, as these areas represent “starter waterfront” and really aren’t considered an option for “UHNWI” (ultra-high-net-worth individuals).

Where to start? 2014 was pretty much more of the same. Very strong year with 81 home sales. We are still dealing with a lack of inventory in the Miami Beach single family home sector. How can I tell? Well, the year-over-year sales price per square foot jumped 16% in 2014 to $1,126. Days on market decreased from 241 in 2013 to 193 last year. Here’s an analysis of how sales price per square foot has shifted over the last five years or so.

Miami Beach and Indian Creek Island Waterfront Sales – Residential Homes and Vacant Land/Knock-downs

YEAR SALES VOLUME # OF SALES $PSF AVG PRICE PER HOME # OF LOT SALES $PSF LOTS-KNOCK-DOWNS SALES VOLUME/LOTS
2014 $556,608,650 81 $1,125 $6,763,530 25 $339 $181,555,000
2013 $520,037,050 90 $946 $5,778,440 11 $285 $75,105,000
2012 $602,818,300 99 $887 $6,089,073 10 $211 $96,495,000
2011 $351,263,033 75 $769 $4,683,507 N/A N/A N/A
2010 $226,854,000 53 $710 $4,280,264 N/A N/A N/A
2009 $169,331,447 42 $702 $4,031,701 N/A N/A N/A
2008 $245,777,500 49 $934 $5,015,867 N/A N/A N/A

I have not tracked land sales prior to 2012 because the numbers were insignificant. But in the chart above, you can see how notable they’ve become over the last three years. I remember when land would sell for UNDER $100 per square foot just before 2012.

2015 Luxury Waterfront Home Sales in Miami Beach/Indian Creek Island – Estates and Land

2014 homes

The Ever-Increasing, Ferocious Desire for LAND

land 2014

Miami: The City of the Future

I love to drive. Yes, even in Miami traffic, I drive… on Collins Avenue, Biscayne Blvd and Wynwood… through Craig Robins’ masterful transformation of the Design District – which is becoming Miami’s Worth Avenue… and along the awe-inspiring swirls of concrete in Doral at the intersection of SR 826 and 836. No matter where I am, my mind is completely blown by the incredible amount of money being pumped into this city by the TRILLIONS.

Even after 20 years in the business, I am amazed by the number of chic, UBER-expensive condos being designed by the most important architects in the WORLD. We have at least 5 five- and six-star condos from Pritzker Prize-winning architects such as Richard Meier, Norman Foster, Rem Koolhaas, Herzog & de Meuron and Zaha Hadid – her first residential project in the Western Hemisphere.

There is no real estate bubble here. People just WANT Miami. It’s just as simple as that. I was further emboldened by Time magazine’s declaration in its December 2014 issue that land and condos in Miami will prove to be one of the four premium commodities of 2015.

My prediction this year for the Miami Beach real estate market is that 1) Inventory will continue to be scarce 2) Days on market will continue to drop, and 3) Price per square foot for homes and land is headed for another healthy bump.

Hey New York City – you’ve got a lot of ground to make up because Miami is on it.

Browse Miami Beach real estate here

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About Kevin Tomlinson