Miami & Miami Beach, Florida – Average Condo Prices per Sq.Ft
March 3,2009
Every day several of my clients ask me, “Ned, how low are the prices going to go in Miami? When should I buy? How far back have the prices retreated from the highs? Well, I have really been stuck answering these questions…truthfully…I dropped my crystal ball a few years ago and I’ve been really stumped.
Of course, the real answers lie not in the average and median prices of “ALL CONDOS” but inside each individual sub-market or even in an individual building. Depending on when the building was completed, who the developer was and what their sale teams’ sales philosophy was or whether it was a condo conversion or a new construction project or even what part of Miami-Dade county the building is located, can dramatically affect the price changes.
Even within one building; different views, apartment condition and floor heights have been affected differently. So with these caveats, I present the following charts on “Average Price per SqFt” for condos in all of Miami-Dade county and the cities of Miami and Miami Beach.
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Miami Average Condo Price per Sq Ft
Our first chart shows that the average price for condos sold in January 2009 in the entire county was $222.00 per sqft. To find a similar price we must travel all the way back to July 2004…FOUR and a HALF years ago!! Remember, this is for all condos and townhomes from Sunny Isles Beach to Hialeah, Doral, Miami Beach, Homestead, Coral Gables and Miami…this is the whole enchilada!!
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Miami Average Condo Price per Sq Ft
Our second chart, is based on data from just the City of Miami: you know, Brickell, Coconut Grove, Midtown, Downtown, Uptown…Miami proper. WOW, $235.00, slightly higher than the county average but to find a similar average…we have to take the “Wayback Machine” and travel back five years to January 2004…also, please note that all of 2003 was relatively flat from quarter to quarter.
Please keep in mind, the disparate properties represented could range from the Santa Maria to the Vue at Brickell…the Club at Brickell Bay to the Four Seasons.
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Miami Beach Average Condo Price per Sq Ft
Now we look at Miami Beach. You know the Beach is special…just ask the local Realtors there…most of them haven’t come back across the MacArthur Causeway in years but, then again, numbers never lie right?! Check it out…$469.00 in January 2009…more than double the County average and exactly double Miami’s number. To find a similar price look at July 2005 for $471.00,
three and a half years ago. But also notice one slight difference from the prior two charts…Januarys’ average was HIGHER than the prior period. Have we turned up? Is the bottom in? How will you really know when the bottom is (was) …well…you can look back and see it…oops.
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Miami Average Waterfront Condo Price per Sq Ft
Now let’s focus on waterfront property. First, throughout the entire county…so this can be everything from oceanfront to canal front, lakefront to bayfront. Again, we see that the last few months were lower and the average has moved up slightly to $344.00 per foot. This is over 50% higher than the all county average of $222.00. To find a similar average let’s look back four years to February 2005.
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Miami Beach Waterfront Condo Price per Sq Ft
Again we see an uptrend pattern in the last several months of averages with December 2008 represented at $475.00 per foot. Look back at April 2005 for $472.00 fully 3.5 years ago. January 2009 registered a very strong $596.00.
So what do you think? Is it about the averages? or is it about the two dealmakers…the buyer and the seller? Is the ICON Brickell going to become the most expensive to build rental project in Miami, when the banks take it back…Will the Bristol Tower be affected…probably not.
Will the most motivated sellers…the banks…find a way to sell all the coming foreclosures that are now listed as “Short Sales” or will the Feds “cram them down their throats? Will Obama fix the problems of the world or has he created a new economy called “Trickle Down Poverty” You tell me!! Post your comments below. BTW, how do you feel about investing in the stock market.
I recall an old Bob Dylan tune…”Subterranean Homesick Blues” from 1965 ..
Look out kid.
They keep it all hid
Better jump down a manhole
Light yourself a candle
Don’t wear sandals
Try to avoid the scandals
Don’t wanna be a bum
You better chew gum
The pump don’t work
‘Cause the vandals took the handles”
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Check it out…Visit us at www.MiamiCondoLifestyle.com and tell us what average price per sqft works for you.
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