Florida home sales, prices increase in May
Home sales in Florida were up 9.6 percent year-over-year in May, according to data from Florida Realtors. Buyer demand in Florida has been increasing for 89 consecutive years. The interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages has decreased– 4.07 percent compared to 4.59 percent last year — which has helped boost buyer activity. Median prices experienced a 3.7 percent increase over April 2018 for single-family homes at $266,000. The price for condos was $251,000, and there were 12,217 closed sales in the condo-townhouse market in May, a 1.6 percent year-over-year increase.
EWM rebrands under Berkshire Hathaway name
EWM Realty International, one of South Florida’s largest residential broker firms, announced June 20 that it would rebrand to join the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices franchise. Going forward, the brokerage will be known as Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices EWM Realty. CEO Ron Shuffield will continue in his role as leader of the company, which since 2003 has been a wholly owned subsidiary of HomeServices of America, Inc. EWM counts 10 locations in the Miami area and more than 900 associates.
Airbnb launches home sharing property in Miami
NGD Homesharing, the creators of Niido, announced its new brand Natiivo to be launched in Miami as well as Austin. Powered by Airbnb, the new residential rental community in Downtown Miami will be the first property in the city to offer home sharing to unit owners as an amenity. The property’s 400 units will start at $300,000. Natiivo is meant to provide guests with authentic experiences that are relevant to the property’s location. Airbnb will provide designs for Natiivo’s common areas to include spaces for Airbnb experience hosts to interact with owners and guests.
Developer hopes to build luxury condos on Terminal Island
Plans could be underway for a 35-story luxury condo tower on Terminal Island, an area zoned for industrial uses right off the MacArthur Causeway, according to an article in the Miami Herald. The Coast Guard is strongly against the construction of this 400-foot residential structure since it would negatively impact its operations and upset potential residents with the noise of ship repairs and cargo loading. It could also serve as a lookout point for criminal organizations and interfere with the Coast Guard’s communication systems.
Related Group plans to build a 50,000-square-foot fleet maintenance and sanitation operations facility to exchange a public benefit for a project that wouldn’t otherwise be permitted. Miami’s land use and development committee will discuss the project before commissioners vote on whether to approve it.