SkyFive Properties Blog

When someone mentions living at the St Regis Bal Harbour, they seem to always say it with a slight smile and a twinkle in their eye. Locals know that the six star resort is an incredibly prestigious residence. In this hot Miami real estate market, the prices just keep going up…and the rich are getting richer.  Yuriy Kosyuk, a Ukrainian billionaire that has built his empire from the food product industry, has set a record through his $22.75 million sale of a penthouse at the St Regis Bal Harbour.

The penthouse unit at the St Regis Bal Harbour was originally planned as five separate units, but apparently Mr. Kosyuk preferred taking the full 14,129-square-foot condominium for himself. (It’s very Russian to be enjoy the deep satisfaction of owning the biggest condo on the top floor of the best building of your favorite community).  The resulting assemblage of space gave way to stunning 360-degree views of magnificent ocean and city skyline. This raw penthouse space was never finished, so the completed sale price of $22.75 million set the Miami sales record for a raw space. Mr. Kosyuk no doubt made a nice profit from his vision to purchase the five units combined as one massive penthouse.  The current record price for a finished Miami condo unit sale is $27 million for a penthouse at the Setai, which was completed in January 2013.

Flamingo South Beach condos represent excellent value considering the prime location and amenities for the condominium tower.  Residing within the trendy West Avenue neighborhood, an assortment of hip mom-and-pop retailers and restaurants are only a short walk away.  And with 1688 units within the complex, The Flamingo South Beach is far and away the largest development in the neighborhood. For many potential condo shoppers, bigger is better.  It means that the amenities for the building tend to be larger and more extensive. The Flamingo South Beach has an excellent fitness center with equipment that will satisfy most professional athletes.  In fact, there are quite a few professional athletes that have either owned or rented a place there as an off-season home.  (I remember seeing football players Jeremy Shockey and Reggie Bush there at the pool a while back).  The towering walls of glass of the fitness center allow for incredible sunset water views…and the crowd at the gym is quite attractive. You just don’t see workout scenes like they have at the Flamingo from where I am from in Wisconsin.

If South Beach is where you desire to set up your home, then you’ll certainly want to check out your Venetian Islands real estate options. The six man-made islands that comprise the Venetian Islands is just a short drive away from Downtown Miami and South Beach via the Venetian Causeway. Whether you wish to set up a family home or own a vacation home, the six islands of Biscayne, Di Lido, Belle Isle, Rivo Alto, and San Marco feature some of the most exclusive homes in a wide range of traditional and modern architectural styles.

Venetian Islands real estate features an eclectic mix of some of the most desirable and sought after luxurious and extravagant waterfront homes. Non-waterfront two story deco homes with three bedrooms and two bathrooms offer great value with prices starting from $1 million. Those currently looking for exclusive waterfront homes have a choice of up to seven bedrooms and expansive waterfront lots that reach up to over $16 million.

High quality Miami real estate investment opportunities are still abundant.  It might be easy to get discouraged when seeing news reports of scarce inventory and reluctant sellers due to the current hot market.  My simple advice is – don’t believe the hype. And certainly, do not feel like the train has already left the station. I strongly feel that Miami is in the middle of a significant renaissance.

Capital is flying into the city from uber-powerful New York private equity firms.  I know this because I deal with them every day. Just yesterday, I basically heard the same message twice from two separate large NY groups, ” Kaya, even though we are living in New York, deals are just getting too difficult here.  We have a strong interest in Miami.  We think that it has tremendous upside.”   It’s never a bad idea to follow the smart money.  The big firms in NY employ large staffs in their underwriting departments.  They are following macro and micro trends and doing deep analysis on Miami and Miami Beach, and the results have yielded a strong green light for executing on Miami real estate investment opportunities.

Top Miami real estate agents have common talents that include experience, intelligence, dedication and adaptability.  If you are looking for the best of the best, you should first look to find plenty of experience as a defining criteria.  The experience of the individual should have extended through up market cycles and down market cycles.  They should have an acumen that has worked through simple deals and deals of a highly complex nature. It’s also a plus to understand both commercial and residential real estate.  The type of analysis in procuring commercial deals can have some basic applications for residential deals as well.  If you are speaking with someone that has experience across all of these channels, then you might have found one of the best real estate agents in Miami.

As I look back at my career as a real estate agent and broker in both worlds of residential and commercial real estate, the experience of working with countless agents has brought a great deal to my awareness.  I can clearly discern some of the common talents that are possessed by top Miami real estate agents.

The city of Miami is as eclectic as it comes. Our ‘Magic City’ as it is called by locals and visitors, truly has a bewitching air about it. Miami has a lot of unique items to suit just about any proclivity such as striking food, amazing nightlife, spectacular beaches, and many attractions. One of the most prolific and prized real estate attractions in South Florida is Star Island.

Star Island is an exclusive real estate community that sits amidst the aquamarine waters of the Biscayne Bay, between Miami Beach and the mainland. The Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve makes up the waters that surround the island. This gated enclave is the preferred home for many of Miami’s wealthy elite and several celebrities because of its extreme privacy, stunning waterfront location, and its limited amount of residents.