Optimism and concern are sharing the stage in Miami real estate these days, with some worried about global volatility slowing the market down, and others bullish on a market coveted Millennials are interested in. What does the future hold? Local luminaries weighed in at our South Florida's 2016 Forecast event.
Property Markets Group founder Kevin Maloney said you shouldn't expect all those gleaming condo towers in the planning stages for Miami to actually break ground. Especially as condo prices fall back to earth.
He said this is especially true in light of a strengthening dollar compared to other currencies, which has cut down on the number of foreign buyers picking up condos in recent months. He said we had some overbuilding and a bit too much supply coming into the marketplace. But that's not the end of the world for Miami.
In fact, he and other panelists during our event at the Four Seasons Miami—Grand Bridge Real Estate Capital's Adam Lipkin, Arquitectonica's Bernardo Fort-Brescia, Comras Co's Michael Comras, Metro 1's Tony Cho and The Vagabond Group's Avra Jain—remain bullish on Miami for the year.
“Miami is really evolving. It's becoming a first-tier city,” Tony says, adding there's a new level of excitement, especially among startups and entrepreneurial companies flocking to Miami, diversifying the local economy away from the historical growth engines of tourism and construction.
Citing companies like Google and the Cambridge Innovation Center, Avra said Miami is the new city where young people want to be. Cambridge—which caters to incubating startups—has three other locations: Boston, NYC, St. Louis and now Miami. “That means that people have decided that Miami's relevant,” she said. "I look to the younger people here to help define Miami and make it that real sense of place.”
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