Growing demand for industrial real estate

Don’t be surprised if you start noticing for sale signs popping up at warehouses all over Southwest Florida. Realtors say it’s to meet the growing demand for online sales. Real estate appraiser Gerald Hendry says more stores closing during the pandemic means more online shopping. “We were already going to more activity in the grocery/delivery type business - that was already happening, but it really took off. It really accelerated through this COVID period,” he said. [Source: WFTX]

South Florida’s luxury market is rebounding. The majority of buyers are paying cash

Lockdown paralysis ended with a roar as luxury home buyers fled taxes elsewhere, creating a third-quarter surge in South Florida. After a whopping 55.6% drop in year-over-year luxury sales in the second quarter, third-quarter sales of existing homes skyrocketed by 65.2% for single-family houses and by 18.2% for condos when compared with the same period in 2020, according to the latest Keyes Luxury South Florida Market report. [Source: Miami Herald]

Tourism is waning but construction is booming in Central Florida

Thousands of workers in Central Florida, primarily at the theme parks, have lost their jobs in recent weeks. While the tourism industry in Central Florida is struggling, another is booming and, more importantly, hiring. In the last six months more than 2,300 homes built in 2019 have sold in Orange and Seminole counties. New development is still happening, and some companies are hiring to keep up with the demand. [Source: Spectrum News 13]

Investors heat up cold storage market

Investors are increasingly turning to the cold storage sector, which showed surprising resilience through the first few months of the pandemic. Lineage Logistics, the world’s largest landlord of temperature-controlled storage, pulled in $1.6 billion in a fundraising round that ended last month, according to the Wall Street Journal. [Source: The Real Deal]

Brace yourself: Your next home insurance rate increase is going to be a whopper

South Florida homeowners are about to get hit with insurance rate increases unlike any other they’ve ever experienced. Insurers have been warning for years that these increases would hit us hard. And now they’re here, thanks to years of rising claims abuses, court-clogging litigation, spiraling costs from hurricanes Irma and Michael, and one of the most active seasons in memory for severe and destructive weather. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]

ALSO TRENDING:

› Nassau County deputies warn real estate agents to be careful when showing houses [WJXT]
The Nassau County Sheriff’s Office is warning real estate agents to be careful when meeting for appointments to show houses. The warning comes after several real estate agents in Nassau County reported that a man called them and asked to see properties as soon as possible, according to the Sheriff’s Office. “The man’s manner was very urgent," the Sheriff’s Office said.

› Realtors pressure St. Pete to loosen development rule in flood-risk zone [Tampa Bay Times]
As a key vote looms before the City Council to potentially allow more development in flood-prone areas, one of Florida’s powerful special interest groups is making a late push. A political committee of Florida Realtors, which lobbies for the real estate industry, sent a mailer to some residents encouraging them to urge council members to pass the changes.

› Miami-Dade is one storm away from a housing catastrophe. Nearly 1M people are at risk [Miami Herald]
Housing advocates have long feared that the city is one storm away from disaster; nearly a third of all housing structures in Miami-Dade County built before 1990 are at risk of wind damage, mold contamination and even complete devastation from a hurricane. According to U.S. Census figures, nearly one million people could be left homeless in a worst-case scenario — the majority of them among the poorest of the county’s residents.

› Integra scores approval for waterfront workforce housing project in Florida Keys [The Real Deal]
Integra Investments is moving forward with its plans to build Wrecker’s Cay Apartments, the largest workforce housing project to be built in the Florida Keys in more than 50 years. Miami-based Integra, led by developer Victor Ballestas, recently secured approval from Monroe County for the 280-unit development on Stock Island near Key West.