South Florida Luxury Real Estate Market Sees Rush of Buyers

variety.com:

Kathy A. McDonald There’s an unprecedented rush for South Florida residential real estate. The pandemic accelerated demand across the state’s sun-kissed southeastern coastline as home buyers, relocating from areas with state personal income taxes (mainly New York, New Jersey and California), fueled a dramatic rise in property values.Home values are up more than 50% year-over-year from 2020 to 2021 and rents in Miami alone jumped 31% in the same time frame, per real estate agency Redfin.For those who want to buy in South Florida (from the Palm Beaches to Coral Gables and points south), patience is required, even more so if the property is an ultra-luxury waterfront manse on one of the region’s coveted private islands. “There’s a very limited supply at the top tier of marketplace,” says Dina Goldentayer, a real estate agent at Douglas Elliman Miami Beach, who grossed $750 million in sales in 2021. “There’s a gap between buyers and sellers, and the amount of deal flow, considering demand.”To bridge that gap, many deals are brokered off market, where buyers have very little leverage, she says, as sellers are not compelled to sell under these scenarios.Goldentayer specializes in Miami Beach, where the sophisticated nightlife, high-octane lifestyle, oceanfront living and year-round fine weather results in its own rarefied pocket of demand and premium pricing.“It may take three strikes to get a home and the buyer must have a willingness to overpay by 10% to 15%,” she says.Most in demand are homes directly on the beach, where values have hit up to $4,000 per square-foot. “Larger condos and penthouses are in total upswing,” she adds as buyers see them as viable single-family home replacements (with the important add-on of.