The Urbanization of Brickell
April 7, 2008 by Lucas Lechuga
Many of you local to Miami may have read in Sunday's edition of the Miami Herald an article entitled, "Brickell's Draw: A Feel of City Life". It describes the great transformation that Brickell has seen within the past 2-3 years. The article is a must-read for non-locals who may not be very familiar with what Brickell has to offer. Be sure to also take a look at the video which provides great insight from the perspective of a Miami resident.
Looks good to me, I like Brickell as well, the only problem is that going out to the restaurants and bars there are expensive. The person in that video is a young and attractive women, I’m sure she’s not paying for most of her drinks haha. Brickell is great but seriously I don’t know how many times a week I could afford to go out there.
Brickell is the only place that offers the work, live & play environment that is supported with ample, accessible public transportation.
Now if only they could finish all the construction….
i’m calling shenanigans. i look out every night from my office into brickell. at best, 1/3 of the lights are on in these buildings. AT BEST.
let’s face facts – brickell will turn into a good spot in the long run. it’s inevitable and that’s good (sadly, by the time it turns, i will have a mrs. jcrimes and a jcrimes jr or two). however, the article is way off base, or more matter of factly, any person is misguided to think, that brickell is some sort of urban enclave these days. it’s not and won’t be for several more years.
all of that said, raffi makes an extremely good point – the girl is hot.
That article was a reaction to all the heat The Herald has received lately from the local real estate industry on the negative press about Brickell, i.e. “the foreclosure district” moniker. They needed a positive story to counter all the “doom n gloom” press, even if the story is a bit untimely.
Spin article by a paper that has seen it’s real estate advertising shrink in half. Stock ticker for MCCLATCHY CO HLD (MNI).
i’m counting a total of five lights on at brickell on the river south for the units facing north. north building, units facing east, is about 40% lit. latitude on the river is showing no more than ten lights for the units facing north. neo vertika is showing a flurry of activity – i’d say over 50% of the units facing east and north appear to be lit.
“raffi makes an extremely good point – the girl is hot.”
She seems to talk in complete sentences and use proper grammar. +1 Brickell, 0 South Beach.
I’ll keep an open mind, and I’m certainly willing to keep giving it a shot, but I got to tell you about the last time I went to Brickell’s urban enclave on a Sunday morning. We were in no-frills shorts and t-shirts in the Mary Brickell Village area and looking for a hearty basic breakfast, not a Starbucks’ pastry.
The only thing we found was an elaborate breakfast buffet at $25 per person; For me to send $50+ for breakfast there better be some damn special occassion attached to that breakfast, like winning the lotto the prior Saturday night. We enjoyed our Sergio’s breakfast instead.
Enough with the upscale this, and the exclusive that; and could we get some servers who were hired based on the ability to provide customer service, not because they look like they’re waiting to be discovered.
Perez,
Welcome to the service capital in North America!!!! LOL!
Hi Lucas,do we have any true and realistic number’s on last month’s sale’s and closing’s?that would be nice to see if possible.The other question I have is how close to the BOTTOM are we or are we???I’m sure that the salespeople can answer that one for us.Thank’s and keep up the GOOD WORK.
What lies… This little number knows you cant walk everywhere in brickell and that you have to take this slow as boring one way people mover (which shuts down at 12 or so) or overpriced expensive cabs… sure it beats the hell of living from west kendale where you NEED a car but this is not yet a walk-able place, you may find 2 or 3 venues close to each other but other than that you have to cab it the rest to get to another place sometimes walking may not even be safe.
With all these condos going up I predict in the next 3-5 years it will by a much more viable option to south beach ( and a great investment to get in now if you get a great price), but to live… not until the transportation is better and that bay link is constructed. I just don’t see a major benefit in living in Brickell area vs. South Beach. At 60 USD round trip cab ride from 50 Biscayne to Lincoln Road it only make sense for those that don’t mind not really going out and can live blocks away from work or those that don’t mind the brickell / biscayne traffic, parking and late night driving from south beach.
I was shocked to see the article in Sunday’s Herald. For a second, I thought perhaps I was wrong about my speculation regarding the Brickell area – it was a quick second. I’ve read several blog posts on this site over the last few weeks and the posts so far are right-on. I’m glad to see not everybody bit on to the Herald’s plea to escape the crap they got for their accurate reports on the Brickell “disaster area”. But it is right in at least one respect – Brickell’s potential is incredible. It always has been. I lived there for 2 years a few years ago and enjoyed it incredibly. Living with an ocean view (a quick digression -by ocean view, I don’t mean 30th floor of a unit 3 blocks away from the water (in reference to other comments on this site regarding what is “prime” Brickell real estate – if its not on the water, with a water view – its not “prime”) and after moving away, I couldn’t wait to get back. But I will be patient because I have to. We aren’t at the “bottom” . . . we aren’t near the “bottom”. I wish we were. I wish I could force myself to buy right now, knowing that I will stay in the condo for 5 years . . . but that would just be throwing away money. Buildings are empty and your comments show that no matter what the Herald attempts to hit at, it has no underlying factual basis. Condos are empty, and everytime I drive home after a Heat game, after dinner, or whatever occasion brings me to that side of the woods, I see tall buildings that seem to be out of a children’s scary movie – tall dark buildings with their shadows cowering over the street as I drive through it looking up wondering if they are going to eat me up (ok its not that bad). On some nights, there is a little hippity-hop in some of the new hot-spots. Hopefully that isn’t just a fad . . . like everything else in Miami.
Simple supply and demand dictates that this area will not see what the Herald’s article suggests for several years . . . and by several, I don’t mean 2, 3, or even 4. (Not the market bottoming out but the movement of people to Brickell and it becoming its own Miami Hot Spot). This is a “long haul” type of project and I am bothered by the Herald’s article which I feel misrepresents to people, many of whom are already in financial distress or trouble, that the sunny side of the market is right around the corner.
I would also like to know where Mr. Zalewski works because I want to make sure not to deal with him; ”The funds are going to rent stuff out at a price that will poach residents from Aventura, South Beach, Kendall,” Zalewski says. “You’ll be able to get a sleek, new, 1,000-square-foot unit on Brickell for $1,200″
Mr. Zalewski – Please show me!! I want to see it – in fact, find me a 1,000-square-foot unit that’s sleek and brand new with a great view of the water for $1,200 and I’ll take 2. I’m guessing he’s talking about a sleek, new apt on the 1st floor facing the building’s dumpsters? Or maybe he is talking about those prices when the market has completely bottomed out? And even then, if the owner of all this properly can afford to rent them at that price, then the owner won’t be the owner very long — see Webster’s definition of foreclosure / bankruptcy?
Brickell won’t be South Beach – it has neither the beaches, the vibe, or the naked rollerbladers – although it seems to be attempting to charge the same for a breakfast/dinner.
Brickell won’t be Coral Gables – it doesn’t have the restrictions on buildings (which help them maintain their value) nor the class that the Gables community exudes.
Brickell must create / maintain the vibe that most of the people, who are already there, desire. The majority work their asses off at work a few blocks away, probably leave the office at a later hour and want a simple yet refined meal without the exorbitant costs that are affiliated with South Beach – the idea of velvet ropes entering a bar in Brickell somewhat disgusts me.
Miss Mary Brickell “exorbitant costs that are affiliated with South Beach – the idea of velvet ropes entering a bar in Brickell somewhat disgusts me.” Very True
I don’t think that “hot girl” gets as much free drinks as you guys think. Come on, let’s face it, more than half of the people have to be conservative on their bar bills.
Lucas,
This post humors me. How could you post something positive? How could you.
Now if you posted a Miami Herald article that was heinous, everyone in this room would agree.
Chelsea Handler doesn’t call a big rack “meal ticket(s)” for nothing!
Hi Kevin,
When I first heard about your blog (through Lucas’s Site!) I was actually excited. Lucas’s blog is more of a general blog for all of Miami’s Condos and yours is exclusively for the South Beach which I love to follow. I visited your blog and Oh boy, what an utter disappointment it was. It was like someone threw a bucket of cold water on my face, especially after enjoying a nice steamy conversation on Lucas’s site. Your site is sleek, colorful, pretty and then……….absolutely boring. All you have to talk is mostly about million $ condos (Ok that is your line of Real Estate) and precious little of anything else. The comments that you recieve are so dry, it looks like you do some very serious pruning of the messages or outright censorship or even worse, many of your contributors compete with you for the Yawn factor.
How could you disparage an entire blogging community on this site with such inane comment such as “Now if you posted a Miami Herald article that was heinous, everyone in this room would agree”.
I for one would think that the intelligence level of the bloggers on this site is the highest I have seen in many of the blogs that I follow including Politics, Religion, Real Estate and Economy.
You can only dream of such a following of readers and contributors.
“The funds are going to rent stuff out at a price that will poach residents from Aventura, South Beach, Kendall,” Zalewski says. “You’ll be able to get a sleek, new, 1,000-square-foot unit on Brickell for $1,200″
The guy is an absolute tard. “The Funds” “The Smart Money” yadda yadda. The smart money is looking at Brazil, not a foreclosure in Brickell. So now you are left with the B team that may come in and be the first to get their hands chopped off. Good luck to them.
These purported funds should know you can’t buy up the unwanted condos and flood the rental market… and I’m sure renting out a $400,000 condo for $1,200 is not what they’ve been modeling out on their cashflow projections to fund investors.
It’s not just Brickell, … bad things are really starting to pick up steam in Aventura, Sunny Isles, Eastern Shores. Brickell is a strong contender, but there’s plenty of contestants in this race to the bottom. Heck, Palm Island and North Bay Road are even getting with the program.
At the end of the day, we are what… 2-3 years into this “Armageddon”? I think I read in the Armageddon handbook that you should expect more like 10 years so let “the funds” and “smart money” jump in first. Whether they want to or not, they need to put their money to work to justify their paychecks so they are always too early to every dance.
AJ
Hello. First off let me clarify that Lucas and I have two completely different blogs. Lucas is a friend of mine and we speak almost daily.
My blog is not aimed nor desired to have the dialogue of my friend Lucas’ blog.
Yes, It is true that I “prune” my comments. If someone makes an off-topic comment, that comment doesn’t make it out of moderation.
If I have a post about a specific topic and a comment comes in about the sushi restaurant in the lobby of another building—zappo.
Lucas and I have two completely different readers AND reasons for writing.
My blog is very successful for what it was DESIGNED to be, thank you very much.
ps bloggers know that the annonymous and unidentifiable always are the most critical.
I rarely only respect or engage annoymous commentors.
This is a bubble blog. My blog is a South Beach luxury condos blog.
Brickell is a nice place to play, but still a horrible place to live. When I first moved to Miami, I lived with a friend at the Club at Brickell before moving to One Miami. At first I was entranced by the ability to walk to work, the nifty views from a high floor and the variety of nice restaurants. Notwithstanding the maintenance/common area issues that these buildings have, the biggest day-to-day issues were: 1) parking; 2) getting a quick bite (vice a sit-down meal; and 3) grocery shopping. Basically the three issues are intertwined. To drive out of my 12th floor parking garage took almost 5 minutes, then you had to deal with parking, and then the trek back up to the garage. After getting stuck on the people-mover for over 45 minutes with a motley Sunday morning crowd (think “Warriors”), I stopped using this wretched and unreliable “free” public service. At the end of my lease, I moved to North Beach, and I love it. I still visit the cougars at Blue Martini once in a while, especially for happy hour, but there’s no way I would live here again.
The southern stretch of Brickell is not deserted at all, established buildings interspersed with a couple newer ones. I live 3 blocks from the Rickenbacker on Brickell on the water and it’s magnificent. There’s breakfast at Deli Lane Cafe on Sundays, so no need to spend $25. River Oyster Bar is one of the best restaurants in the city and it’s in the mid price range for really good food. Just start taking walks (in your sneakers so you can go far) and you will find lots of places that are more locals than overpriced overpacked venues.
I’ve never been a big fan of the Brickell area, personally. To me, it’s not so much urban as it is a vertical suburb. There’s no life at street level, at least not on Brickell Avenue itself. This is due to the fact that the buildings (particularly, the condos) were all built with large set-backs from the street and without any ground-floor retail. So there’s really no urban feel to it in that regard. It’s a lovely, tree-lined thoroughfare with VERY TALL houses.
The City of Miami had done a better job with the zoning along Biscayne Boulevard, where condominiums are set up against the street, and they include retail and commercial space at street-level. You can already see more of a true urban scene developing there, with restaurants, shops, and other establishments setting up in those street-level spaces. The storefronts at Cite’ are nearly all full (The Daily, Oxxo, CitiBank, etc.), as are the ones at the condo across the street from Cite’ (Bin 18, etc.). Mario The Baker just opened a new restaurant in the ground floor of another apartment building on Biscayne and 25th St. THAT area, I believe, has more potential of developing a truly city-like feel to it.
Brickell is primarliy a business venue and always will be. Consequently, as many have noted, basic living services like a corner grocery are not viable. Here’s some food for thought: once all those condos are completed and filled, what do you think traffic is going to be like? On one end you have the stupidly rebuilt Miami river bridge that is open half the day and on the other the backups from the key biscayne bridge and US1. East west traffic is limited to Coral Way and SW 8th/7th Streets. It’s going to be a real nightmare. Shame on the City of Miami Urban Planning Dept, they have created a monster that won’t be fixed anytime soon.
Hi Kevin,
This is not a bubble blog. There is so much positive information here, you just refuse to see it. This blog does not sink to the low of some RE agents I have dealt with whose only aim is to close a sale with a thousand lies if necessary. Think of used car salesmen.
Responsible, balanced blogs like this tend to precipitate the bottom faster instead of prolonging the pain so that the completely stagnant sales will start their motion again and people like you will benefit too. Meanwhile, your blogs and the likes are desperately trying to postpone the inevitable. The faster the prices hit 2003 levels, the good for everybody. You, me, buyer, seller, the economy and the whole world per se. You, the realtors are so chicken scared to tell the owners that 2004 and 2005 gains are a total fraud, a myth and just paper wealth. You think that you will lose the listing by doing so. Instead you (and your likes) are trying to convince the buyer that it is still a good value.
You call yourself a freind of Lucas and how could you do this to a “freind” by calling his blog a bubble blog? With friends like you….
I personally think that this site is very balanced. Have you not read Lucas’s previous post “Steals are just not happeneing ……” If Lucas intended this to be a bubble blog, he would not be posting such articles.
If you really want to know what a bubble blog is or looks like, Here it is:
http://www.realestatedecline.com/
Now, coming back to me, my dear friend, I am by no means anonymous. AJ is my real name. I dont have to give you my last name as I am not doing business with you. Lucas has my e-mail, and a couple of realtors on this site have my phone number too and I have spoken with them.
If this blog has a facility to post avatars or thumbline images of bloggers, I would gladly put my face on it. I am afraid of no one.
Kim:
I am moving to Miami soon and I was considering renting a unit at One Miami. Could you tell me a little about your experience there? What are the pros and cons…..any information would be very helpful. The alternative for me would be South Beach. I keep going back and forth and can’t really decide especially being an outsider. Thanks
Looks as if the hot woman in the video represents a PR firm, Zakarin Public Relations, which represents condo developers such as Related. IMHO, she probably pitched the story to the Herald and that’s why she was “featured” in the video…
From the zakarinpr.com site:
“When Jorge Perez started developing low-income housing, he hardly thought he’d end up on the cover of Forbes’ Rich List, rubbing elbows with Bill Clinton, or jetting to LA as a motion picture executive. The accidental billionaire blended street smarts with artistic passion to make a lasting impact on cities, skylines, culture and politics.”
Just reading through some of the comment’s on this blog.AJ has the right Idea of what is really going on.We are in a DOWN market and it is not getting any better … any time soon.I too have dealt with a couple of realestate people that have ONE THING on there mind.SELL SELL SELL with no consideration to the purchaser.ONLY themselves.I’m downright sick of some of these people.GET DOWN TO REALITY.THIS IS 2008….not boom time’s it’s a BUST.LET’S GET ON WITH THE PROGRAM
“to make a lasting impact on cities, skylines, culture and politics.”
2 out of 4 ain’t bad.
JL
i think you could say all four apply. the only question is whether you would add the word “positive” between “lasting” and “impact.”
Kevin
why do you care if people post anonymously? i think it would matter if people were acting like tough guys or blowhards but i don’t perceive that to be a major issue here. sure, anonimity provides you the ability to perhaps be a little more bragadocious, but, even if you knew the real name, what difference does it make? really, what incentive does anyone have here to blow smoke up other’s proverbial asses? are you telling me that little old jcrimes can cause a condo crash?
Good work SoBe Buyer, she’s Vice President of Zakarin Public Relations (Sorry guys, no photos) They have an impressive client list some with ties to the Brickell area, such as Fortune International, Brickell Financial Center, and as you mentioned, The Related Group.
I don’t fault her or her firm; it’s great PR for the company and their clients, but I wonder whether from a journalism ethics perspective the Herald should have disclosed the firm’s potential motives.
I wonder if the Herald will do a similar piece about Park West, and interview the homeless that love their neighborhood.
Regarding the PR firm. Aren’t PR firms hired to create hype around products / services/ people/ events / etc. They are in the business of stirring up demand? Quite frankly, I have found the Miami Herald coverage of the bubble overwhelmingly tinged to the bullish side if not bordering on irresponsible (when did they stop being a watchdog?) Did anyone notice a couple of weeks ago when the case-schiller index had miami #1 in prices declines clocking in at 19% yoy. That is absolutely unprecedented in history. Needless to say, it did not even warrant
a headline in the herald. You needed a pick and shovel to dig it out of where it was burried on some obscure page in the business section. THANKS GOD FOR THE BLOGOSPHERE [ with a thick perisian accent ]
Hi Hugo,
Thanks for the appreciating words and Jcrimes too.
I am an investor. I have a condo in SOBE, a co-op in NYC and 2 more investment condos abroad. I get particularly mad when someone suggests that I am a bubblehead. How the hell would I be a bubblehead, if I am wishing for a crash, it would be equal to shooting my own foot?
I am a pragmatist. This runaway prices actually hurt me than help me even though it created a lot of paper wealth for me. My investing has come to a standstill because of this madness.
I am hoping that sanity returns but real estate people like X and Y are still playing deception games.
There are people like these self serving X & Y who are still insisting all is well and if you dont buy now, you will miss the bus again (same sick argument they used in 04/05 to cause bidding wars). Then there are some people on the other end of the spectrum who say that the prices will settle to pre-boom levels of 2001.
I wish I could predict future but I think that the fair price would be that the prices recede back to 2003 levels. If it happens or when will it happen is a matter of discussion.
As most new construction condos were sold in 2004, their pre-con prices are also high and need another 20-25% off on the developer announced precon prices. Same goes with existing condos too. For example Mirador sold line 12, Direct bayview in 1000 building for an average price if $330/sf in 2004. They went up to $500+ in the boom and are now quoting at $400. First they should fall uniformly to 04 levels and then a bit more before they become attractive again. Somewhere in the price range of $300/sf or less to be attractive for investors.
Only and only then will end users and investor like me will jump back into the market. Until then these X and Y can cry themselves hoarse saying the market is pink again in certain areas or some buildings, tout a single sale in some fancy building and go to town about it, will not sway the people. They got duped once and they wont get duped again.
Presently the prices are what they should be in the year 2012 or 2013 if the natural course of inflation adjusted increases were allowed to happen. 04/05 skewed everything and it needs to be corrected. If anyone says otherwise, they are either lying or delusional.
For all those RE agents, in your own interests you should pray that the bottom comes fast and the prices recede soon to a very reasonble levels so that all of us on the sidelines will come back to you guys. It is better to sell a condo for 40% less than you sold in 05/06 and make some commission than making nothing at all. Do not try to hoodwink people, it is not going to work this time. If you are not pragmatic, you will be as out of work as a snow blower in Miami.
As much as everyone likes to spin the news to make it seem better, until Miami Dade reduces its tax burden on homeowners the residential real estate market will remain in the toilet.
I still tremble with anger when I think of the $4,000 I wasted in taxes last year on my 569 s.f. condo in South Beach that is appraised at $220k.
The nerve!
SoBe Buyer?,
Your reference is interesting: From the zakarinpr.com site:
“When Jorge Perez started developing low-income housing, he hardly thought he’d end up on the cover of Forbes’ Rich List, rubbing elbows with Bill Clinton, or jetting to LA as a motion picture executive. The accidental billionaire blended street smarts with artistic passion to make a lasting impact on cities, skylines, culture and politics.”
However, this from the Miami Herald “Business Monday”, dated April 18, 2005. Gourge Perez without his Zanax:
“Perez might find himself vulnerable to the perils of the South Florida condo market. Perhaps mindful of that, Perez recently quipped: “IF YOU FIND ME UNDER A BRIDGE, YOU’LL KNOW I MADE THE WRONG CALL.”
R_Marie,
In general the One Miami scene was more veneer than substance, more sizzle than steak. Once the novelty value lapsed (around 3 months or so), the pragmatic realities of day-to-day living and working between there and Brickell started to really grind on me. I’ll leave it at that to keep this blog line on topic, but if you want to know more, I’d be happy to let you know offline — fairkim@gmail.com. BTW, I can’t compare One Miami to SoBe, since I live on the north end of the beach (60th-ish and Collins), but I can definitely give you the pros/cons of One Miami in and of itself.
Hi Candela, I cannot agree with you more. Read the related post on Taxes I posted under “New Miami Condos Closing rate”. Yes the taxes here are disgusting. Florida says it is a no income tax state but then they absolutely screw you with property taxes, which I think are some of the highest in the country. It is a shame on Floridas collective soul. I would rather have then a consumption tax or state income tax rather than fleecing the home owners like this. They have also created a kind of apartheid with two classes of citizens. Ones who lived here for long and the others made up of recent residents or people who bought homes in Florida to live there when they retire.
Kim,
Can you post the scoop on one Miami here for everyones benefit. I have also considered that building to buy a unit. Like to know what are the pitfalls there.
Thanks
What do you guys think of a forclosure at the Cosmopolitan 2/2 for just around $400K, that’s about $400 per square foot. Is that a good deal?
$400 /sf for a lowrise with no views is not a good deal at all. For $400 /sf you should have a fabulous water view. I also dont know why everyone says “south of 5th ” with such reverence. It is such a non issue. Cosmo also has no setback and surrounded by main streets all sides. The lobby is pathetic. Just wait 6 months and pay $300/sf. or maybe even less. Personally I would not pay a penny to live there. But to each his own.
One Miami:
I lived there for about six months — from March until August 2007. I rented in the __23 line of the western building (3/2 approx 1700 S/F) for $2700/month, unfurnished. This is a nice line with an eastern view of the river and bay. The apartment is very large with a nice balcony. Standard med-end appliances (GE Profile, nice cabinets, granite, etc.). The industrial grade carpet was a bit of an anomoly given the appliances and line, but it didn’t bother me too much.
The Cons (in no particular order): this building was populated a combination of local students (mostly grad students from UM), professionals and your standard South American moneyed crowd, and to a certain extent it was a noisy building; I know that’s vague, but I can’t otherwise describe it: it was more like a hotel atmosphere — very bustling and noisy. It wasn’t too bad within the unit (since the __23 line is at the end of the hall), but the common areas were always crowded (e.g., lobby, gym, pool deck). Granted some people might like this environment, but the bottom line is: it seemed like a rental building — not a condo.
Parking is atrocious. Even the top of the line 3/2 units have only one assigned parking space and one “valet” space. Mine was on the 9th or 10th floor, if I remember, and leaving and getting home during the work-week took as long as 7-10 minutes with the traffic at times. Weekends were a little better, but the fact is, after a while, the parking hassle factor actually started become an entering argument as to what I would do that day — completely tail wagging the dog. The valet parking takes a good ten minutes easy — although if necessary, a call beforehand often mitigated the wait. Contrary to what anyone says, the valets do expect at least a dollar every time they retrieve a car — they have a collective memory of who consistently tips and retrieve cars accordingly. I can absolutely see why Smush Parker went ape$shit on these pompous fools.
There are only four elevators, three of which actually worked. This seems adequate, but the wait can be atrocious at times for a 40+ story building.
I ended up walking to Bayside, Starbucks, and Iron Sushi, or Quiznos for quick bites to eat. All these (with the exception of Bayside) were only open until 7pm or so and seldom on weekends.
I would drive to Publix near Brickell maybe twice a month, but anyone who’s gone there knows how painful this can be. I ended up buying most of my groceries at the CVS.
On some weekends the La Bamba booze cruise dinghy would go right outside my window up the river blaring Reggaeton, Ashlee Simpson, and ear-shattering salsa music — sometimes until 3am.
Prime Blue had just opened up; good but expensive — plus the Related monkeys would come down and try to commandeer the bar with their brash talk and arrogant hyperbole — such a$$holes. I went there last week and the long-time bartender told me they haven’t been coming in too much lately, since many had been laid off… Gabbiano hadn’t opened up yet.
One last peeve: the close nature between this condo and the Intercontinental was bandied about (i.e., IC maid service/room service availability, etc.). There is an elevator on the pool deck which accesses the hotel, but the elevator never worked when I tried it; nor did I ever see anyone use it.
Just some background: my landlord bought pre-construction and paid in the $400K’s — an absolute steal, I thought. However, his condo fees increased from $800/month to over $1200 a month — you read that right. Assessments loomed b/c there were so many people (30%) of the building were defaulting on condo fees. From what I understand, the condo association was close to running at a deficit (i.e., zero reserves). I went to one condo-meeting as a favor to my landlord and it was pandemonium — and absolute free for all regarding rather heavy issues (lawsuits, who’s going to pay this $45K contractor bill, etc.). There has been two or three management changes since the buildings opened in 2005.
Apologies for being so long-winded, but hopefully this helps.
@perez, thanks. The Herald interviewing the homeless? Only when they start buying advertising in the Herald or start buying condos from Related.
@Un-Related, if you see Jorge Perez under a bridge, he’s selling it. Or evaluating it for his $1 billion vulture fund. Or both.
Kim:
Thanks so much for your insight about One Miami, that helps a lot. My job is going to be located in the downtown/brickell area so at first I was looking to rent at condos close by but now I am also expanding further out.
I am also interested in your opinions/views of North Beach, I was looking in the area of the La Gorce Condo….the 63’s. I am curious of how the drive is to and from work for you and whats the pros and cons of living in that area and working downtown. Since I don’t want to change the nature of this post you can email me at reshaundra@gmail.com if you like
Thanks so much
Kim, excellent run down on the area and scene, thanks.
R_Marie I have owned a place in the 60th and Collins area for the last 20 years. The area is shaping up more now than ever, but it’s still got a ways to go, and I suspect that things will get somewhat more upscale when Canyon Ranch opens.
In the meantime, there’s not much in the way of food or entertainment in walking distance of the building you mentioned, La Gorce.
NY Bagel and Deli is an expensive yet dumpy coffee shop. There are a few more hole-in-the-wall restaurants between here and 71st Street, like the Venezualan place and the new sushi place that opened up at 65th.
The area north of 74th Street also has some restaurants (Manolo comes to mind, but it’s more of a family oriented place. I know there are others but they are escaping me at the moment) but that’s more than a 20 minute walk, and the neighborhood gets really sketchy at night.
One of the things that has always bothered me about living here is that you need to drive north in order to go south, because the only way to get from the beachside of Collins to the bayside is by turning the loop at 65th Street. It’s not a huge pain in the neck but it is a bunch of extra traffic lights, and getting past the mess that is the 60th Street bridge can be hectic.
On the plus side, along with Canyon Ranch there’s Bel Air on the Beach, NOBE Bay, Regatta Lounge, MEI and NOBE all completing their construction (or so it seems) as well as that odd development smack in the middle of the street, called Cabana on Collins. Why anyone would by in that horrible building is beyond me, but I guess everyone has their own definition of taste.
Definitely one of the plusses about living here is that you can get to the highway very quickly by jumping onto Alton Rd, which is just over the 60th Street Bridge. If you live anywhere farther north (like in Surfside or Bal Harbor) getting to the highway can be a huge pain in the neck.
Hope this helps.
Haha, I like your comment on Cabana on Collins. I think that building has the worst location of any building i’ve ever seen. Doesn’t make any sense.
BC – It took the developers of MEI less time to put up a 20+ story building than it did for the shleppers building Cabana on Collins to build that two story mini monstrosity.
If you want to live in a fishbowl tightly surrounded by buildings and cars, then Cabana on Collins is perfect for you. But I suspect that every single unit in COC was purchased by investors, not end users, and I am really curious to see if anyone ever closes on any of the units there.
I’m also curious to see if any of the eventual owners will put window shades up in their units, or just let it all hang out. Those units are so close to (and visible from) the sidewalks that it will be a voyeur’s wet-dream just to walk up Collins.
“it will be a voyeur’s wet-dream just to walk up Collins”
I love these little snippets. LOL
Thanks Kim for that very insightful info on One Miami. I was fascinated with that building before but I can see exactly what you mean. My head would spin everytime I had to go in circles to get on or off a 9 floor parking area. Valet tipping does add up over the course of a month. Assessments already on a brand new building!? And HOA is $1200 a month!! Woah!
“Contrary to what anyone says, the valets do expect at least a dollar every time they retrieve a car — they have a collective memory of who consistently tips and retrieve cars accordingly.”
I am renting in a condo and the have to deal with the valet parking. The realtor and owner said that there is no need for me to tip since it is included in the monthly condo due and there is an end of month bonus. Obviously if I have the valet bring stuff up to my unit I would tip, but just to get my car for me I almost feel like I need to tip even though the realtor and owner say no. Any thoughts on this and how much should I tip each time I need my car. It is a total pain.
Thank ‘s AJ and Willy..as far as tipping is concerened.I like my nice car looked after…I usually give 2-5 $ .that might sound a bit high to some and a bit low to other’s.However I tip accordingly to how nice the driver is.AJ I can’t agree with you more.There are AGENT’S that (won’t mention any name’s ) that are destroying the market with there B.S.I will write a little story on a very BAD experience I just had with an agent on here soon.I am waiting my Lawyer’s advice …before I tell a very discusting experience I just had with a so called very reputable agent.
Candela:
Thank you for your information it is very helpful. I am just so confused about Miami as far as where to live. As I said previously I will be moving down in May and working downtown so I want to live somewhere convenient and nice but at the same time not crazy hectic. However that may be an unrealistic expectation. Any suggestions on nice buildings to live in…I will be renting at least for the first year. The only buildings I have been inside of is One Miami and 50 Biscayne. On my next visit I hope to set up some appts to see other buildings and make a decision.
Also thanks to everyone else for their comments on condo living…its very interesting and I am trying to find out as much as I can before I decide on a place.