As more multimillion-dollar homes enter market, Realtors look to cash in

While the clientele and price points are vastly different, skills required to sell a home on the market for tens of millions of dollars are not so different from the ones needed to market any other home. An agent specializing in luxury homes sales must know how to reach and woo the small pool of buyers, in the U.S. and abroad, who can afford multimillion homes. The number of listed homes topping the $10 million mark seem to be going up in Florida. [Source: Business Observer]

South Florida home sales fizzle during first quarter. Why do prices keep rising?

Existing home sales in South Florida plunged during the first three months of the year, however, the steady stream of outside buyers pushed median prices of houses and condominiums higher, making them still unaffordable for many local residents. Miami-Dade County recorded 5,607 sales of single-family homes during the first quarter, a 40% drop from 9,391 closings during the same period last year. In Broward, quarterly sales dropped 27%, to 6,517 single-family house purchases from 8,949 a year ago. [Source: Miami Herald]

Some homeowners could see insurance increase for 'emergency' assessment fee

The insurance crisis in Florida is putting more on the minds of homeowners as they will now face another insurance premium increase. The Florida Insurance Guaranty Association has issued an emergency assessment fee of 1%, which is falling back on some homeowners to pay starting October 1. [Source: FOX 4 Now]

Florida lawmakers aim to ease condo confusion, but money questions remain

As residents of condominiums across Florida struggle to adapt to a sweeping new law that increases building inspections and maintenance costs, Florida legislators have agreed to a series of changes aimed at ending confusion — but not the financial pain. This bill is an effort to “provide more clarity, flexibility and transparency,” said Sen. Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, the sponsor of SB 154. The measure is a response to last year’s law that created the first statewide inspection program for aging condos in response to the partial collapse of Champlain Towers South in Surfside in June 2021 that killed 98 people. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

Commercial real estate booming in post-COVID South Florida

One of the primary—and most discussed—economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic was the emergence of remote work and resulting decline in demand for commercial office space. While that general trend has been true for most of the United States, South Florida on the other hand, has been a beneficiary of the socio-economic trends brought about by the pandemic and has emerged as one of the premier markets for commercial office space in the country. [Source: Daily Business Review]

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› Real estate tech firm sees big potential in deep data dives [Business Observer]
In her more than 16 years as a Realtor in Southwest Florida, Kari Leftwich-Wolfe learned there weren’t enough hours in the day to help clients in all the ways she desired. “I became incredibly frustrated with how much time it was taking me to offer my customers an elevated level of service,” says Leftwich-Wolfe, 52. “It basically boiled down to the amount of time that we as Realtors were spending having to do the necessary research to be that hyper-local expert.”

› New property insurance company approved to enter Florida’s troubled market [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Florida homeowners could have the option of buying coverage from a newly formed property insurer — the first startup approved by state insurance regulators in the wake of legal reforms enacted last year. Tailrow Insurance Company’s application to become an authorized domestic insurer and write homeowners multi-peril policies has been approved by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, the office announced in a news release Tuesday.

› New report shows rent prices drop nationwide, but not in Tampa Bay area [WFTS]
As Florida continues to grow at unprecedented rates, all of the extra people are making it tougher to find an affordable apartment or even keep your existing rent from skyrocketing when your lease is up. Jerome Deniz has felt the pinch. For 13 years, he lived in Channelside but was forced out due to the sky-high rent impacting folks across the Tampa Bay area.

› Jacksonville may sell Cecil megasite land to Cosentino Group for what may become a $440 million manufacturing facility [Jacksonville Daily Record]
The city may sell 330 acres of the Cecil Commerce Center megasite in West Jacksonville for about $20.52 million to the Spanish sustainable surfaces company Cosentino Group for what could grow to a $440 million manufacturing facility. The initial phase of the project comprises an estimated investment of $270 million. A second phase would be a capital investment of $70 million.