Despite pandemic, Florida's housing market did well in July

| 8/24/2020

Despite pandemic, Florida’s housing market did well in July

Florida’s housing market continued its positive momentum in July despite the coronavirus pandemic, with more closed sales, more new pending sales, higher median prices and more new listings compared to a year ago, according to Florida Realtors latest housing data. Single-family existing homes sales rose 11.7 percent compared to July 2019, “the best monthly performance for this property type since January’s nearly 18 percent increase,” according to Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr. Brad O’Connor. [Source: Florida Daily]

Miami-Dade is processing evictions again. What that means for renters and landlords

Both tenants and landlords are caught in the middle of a statewide moratorium on evictions and foreclosures that offers few legal solutions for either. The stakes are huge. There are 2.6 million renter households in the state of Florida, according to the University of Florida’s Shimberg Center for Housing Studies. [Source: Miami Herald]

Florida’s ‘haunted’ Sound Rock Castle is now for sale

A literal castle with a history of ghost stories is now on the market in Florida. The "Sound Rock Castle," located at 55 Oceana Drive in Key Largo, was built in 1924 and was just the second home in the area, and is now the oldest remaining home in Key Largo. The current asking price is $1,550,000. [Source: Creative Loafing ]

A Florida landlord got a big PPP loan. Tenants get rats, mold and evictions.

Federal records show Tzadik Properties, which lists the same address as Tzadik Management, recently received between $2 million and $5 million as an emergency loan through the Paycheck Protection Program, created to help companies avert layoffs during the coronavirus pandemic. But while Tzadik got a bailout from the government, some of its residents could soon find themselves homeless. The company is threatening dozens of tenants with eviction, even though many said they lost their jobs to the coronavirus. [Source: Tampa Bay Times ]

Some of Southwest Florida's biggest building deals of the first half of 2020

Despite the emergence of COVID-19, deals came in all sizes in the first half of 2020. The medical industry played a role in a lot of the transactions. "Health care just remains extremely strong," said LandQwest's Adam Palmer, recent president of Florida's Certified Commercial Investment Member chapter. "There’s incredible amount of demand, particularly from out of area institutional investors, that are just dumping an incredible amount of capital. [Source: Naples Daily News]

STAT OF THE WEEK
262
Developer Kolter Urban has begun construction on a pair of planned condominium towers in Tampa and St. Petersburg that will together contain 262 units. The roughly $220 million in projects begins work at a time when many analysts are questioning the viability of urban residential towers because of COVID-19. [Source: Business Observer]

ALSO TRENDING:

› Landowner of former Miami Herald site on Biscayne Bay signals financial distress [Miami Herald]
The Malaysian firm that rocked Miami with the purchase of the former Miami Herald building is in financial distress, a development that could spark fresh questions about one of downtown’s prime building sites. On Wednesday, Genting Hong Kong Limited, the cruise-operating unit of The Genting Group, which bought the Miami Herald site in 2011, told the Hong Kong stock exchange that it would temporarily suspend payments to its financial creditors, citing the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic.

› Venezuelan who purchased Brickell Flatiron condo pleads guilty to money laundering [The Real Deal]
The former head of procurement at a subsidiary of Venezuela’s state-owned energy company, who was accused of money laundering by purchasing South Florida real estate, pleaded guilty. The charge was one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.

› Los Angeles-based Canyon proposes commercial building in Florida [L.A. Biz]
Canyon Real Estate Partners is proposing a three-story building in downtown Delray Beach, Florida, with retail, restaurants and offices. The city’s Site Plan Review and Appearance Board will consider the plans Aug. 26 for the 0.43-acre property at 298 E. Atlantic Ave., next to the FEC Railway. It’s currently a parking lot.

› Miami Dolphins players Tagovailoa, Van Noy and Fejedelem buy South Florida homes [The Real Deal]
Miami Dolphins players Tuanigamanuolepola “Tua” Tagovailoa, Kyle Van Noy and Clayton Fejedelem each closed on homes in South Florida in recent months, property records reveal. Tagovailoa, a quarterback, paid $1.65 million for his home on Pine Lodge Trail in Davie. Records show Adam and Danielle Frija sold the six-bedroom, four-and-a-half bathroom home.

Tags: Real Estate eNews

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