Brickell Real Estate Trends 2014

How have Brickell real estate trends and the 33131 zip code condominium resales performed over the last year?

Brickell real estate trends have shifted back to new construction rekindling demand for prime Brickell and Downtown Miami Luxury Real Estate.

A lot of attention has been given to the new condo boom within the Brickell and Downtown Miami urban cores. If there was ever any doubt of Brickell's incredible untapped value, let it be removed by the ever resilient Miami real estate market. Our clients have been invested into these markets for many years and it's gratifying to see Brickell and other communities continue to mature.

But what about the resale market? You know, the buildings that were built in the last cycle and those prior to that. How have they fared in this new resurgence? Are they losing value? Are real estate resale inventories skyrocketing or plummeting because of shifting demands for new real estate developments?

We took a small sample of the zip code 33131 (Green Shaded Area on above map image) which is again near the epicenter of the latest Brickell Real Estate boom. In our sample we looked at a years worth of closings (April 2013 - April 2014) to see how the resale market has fared. In this sample we only looked at condominiums and no other property types for re-sale in the area.

Are Brickell Real Estate Trends Positive?

The short answer is yes. The chart below (Click to enlarge), gives a few hints. The first takeaway is that resale condo prices per square foot in the 33131 zip code and Brickell Avenue area have continued a steady rise up until March of this year as noted by the blue moving average line on the chart. The green line at the bottom of the chart shows how each successive months resale inventory in the Brickell Condo market has continued to shrink.

Could new construction hurt the Brickell resale market?

Short answer: Maybe...It could be argued that the there is a potential dip in resale values coming as a result of all these new developments hitting a critical mass. I am inclined to not totally agree with this notion. The cost of new construction, land, amenities and the purchasing models being used by most real estate developers today, places the cost of these projects into a different economic bracket altogether. Also, within this specific zip code there has been no major spike in inventory as we have seen in a few other places just north of Downtown Miami.

In addition, there is some seasonality to take into account and also the fact that short sales and bank owned properties are still a very real part of the resale landscape. Thankfully, Short Sales and REO's are becoming a smaller part of the Brickell real estate market but they can still have an impact on the moving average.

Overall, Brickell Real Estate trends are positive for the condo resale market and have been growing in value at a steady rate. With a continued easing on condo lending and the entrance of more lenders, we expect the market to remain stable.