Westside Estate Agency Miami principal Cyril Bijaoui tells us that while Miami will always attract Central and South Americans seeking a safer place for their capital, he's now seeing more of a mix of foreign and domestic buyers. And the pool of domestic buyers is changing, too: "We're definitely seeing an influx of West Coast buyers adding to the already large buyer pool coming down from New York," he says. Recently WEA, whose HQ is in Beverly Hills, tapped Cyril, well known as a Miami residential broker, to run its new Miami office.

Cyril adds that for the Miami market to really "grow up," there will have to be a more stable mix of domestic and foreign buyers; otherwise it won't be a viable market in the long run. He believes that it will be, however. "I feel like I'm backstage at a movie watching all of the pieces come together as Miami is currently under construction," he says. "Even with mild bumps ahead, we'll become a huge metropolis with an international flair unlike any other place in the US—an American Riviera of sorts."