Florida Trend Exclusive
Florida's office market snapshot
Avison Young created a “busyness index” that measures “the degree or intensity of activity within an office environment.” In other words, daily foot traffic. It’s a way to gauge how many workers have returned to the office. Nationally, offices were about 62% as busy in Q3 2024 as they were in Q3 2019 months before the COVID pandemic. None of Florida’s six main markets has returned to pre-COVID levels, but West Palm Beach, Miami, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale easily beat the national average. [Source: Florida Trend]
How a Florida company is using new technology to help lower housing costs
Natural disasters can devastate entire communities. Rebuilding can be time consuming and costly, but a Florida company says it can rebuild in a matter of weeks for less money. Patrick Murphy, a former Florida congressman, is the managing director of Renco, the company behind the new technology, which was inspired by an unusual item: Lego bricks. The bricks are a composite made of glass, recycled plastic and other materials. [Source: CBS News]
Some Florida condo associations missed a key deadline. Here’s what’s next.
In Florida’s sweeping push to ensure aging condo buildings are kept safe, there are many key things that have — and haven’t — happened so far this year. Many condo associations for older buildings with three or more stories were required by Dec. 31 last year to submit inspection paperwork. It’s necessary under new safety guidelines that were enacted after the 2021 collapse of the Champlain Towers South condo building in Surfside that killed 98 people. More from the South Florida Sun-Sentineland the Tampa Bay Times.
Central Florida housing market sees highest inventory spike since 2015
If you’ve been thinking about buying or selling a home in Central Florida, now might be the perfect time to act. For the first time since 2015, the region is experiencing its highest housing inventory spike in nearly a decade according to the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association. With over 11,000 homes on the market as of January 2025, buyers and sellers are navigating a shifting landscape filled with opportunities and challenges. [Source: WFTV]
He renovated a rundown Florida house. County billed him $24K for previous owner’s neglect.
When Morgan Voke bought a run-down house with a leaky roof and the vacant lot next door at tax deed sales, he figured he’d renovate the properties. But Voke was later stunned to learn the properties — now combined into one lot — carried tens of thousands of dollars in code-enforcement liens after years of neglect by the previous owners. That bill was now his. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]
$2,900,000
Rich New Yorkers keep flocking to West Palm Beach — and it’s sparking a huge spike in home prices. Median listing now sits at $2,900,000. [Source: Moneywise]
› Cities with the fastest-growing home prices in Florida
The real estate frenzy spurred by the coronavirus pandemic continues, though at a slower pace. Buyers are still competing for a limited supply of housing, driving up prices for affordable properties. The typical home value in the United States was $356,776 in January, 2.6% higher than the year before. Increasing mortgage rates have slowed growth, with prices even declining in some places. But some areas are still seeing price jumps compared to the year before.
› Florida insurance companies steered money to investors while claiming losses, study says
While Florida insurers claimed to be losing money in the wake of hurricanes Irma and Michael, their parent companies and affiliates were making billions of dollars, according to a study obtained by the Times/Herald. The start of the state’s insurance market meltdown came on the heels of those two storms between 2017 and 2019, as companies justified big rate increases to cover their losses. But those financial hardships don’t tell the full story.
› South Florida's housing market gets 'troubling sign'
he recent explosive rise in inventory in the Sunshine State's city of Fort Lauderdale is a "troubling sign for the future of home prices" in South Florida, real estate analyst Nick Gerli warned. According to Redfin's latest data, there were 9.84 months of supply in Broward County, where Fort Lauderdale is located, this month—"the highest level [in Fort Lauderdale] since the end of the 2007-12 crash" Gerli, CEO of Reventure App, noted.
› Climate change is driving people from the coast. Will it happen in Florida?
Local governments across the country have adopted policies to buy high-hazard properties where living and working has become untenable for residents. Known as “managed retreat,” the strategy aims to move people, buildings and infrastructure away from areas that are especially vulnerable to climate change. In Florida, these spaces are some of the most expensive and desirable that the state offers.