February 09 Real Estate Market Reports for Miami Shores, Bay Harbor Islands, Surfside, Fisher Island, Aventura, Biscayne Park and El Portal

This is a Miami Real Estate Market Report for February 2009 – OMG!! This month has been crazy, as if people expected magic from Omaba coming into office….get a grip people….the mess was so huge and so ugly, it WILL take some time. So the banks are still not lending and people are stressed out. I, on the other hand, see things differently, not because I have rose colored glasses or because I kid myself into being an optimist. These market reports show change and as minimal and trivial as you may think the change is….it’s still change. Have patience, there are more buyers in the streets and more people willing to make the move, we are seeing it…every day more and more. It is definitely a good sign.

I do these real estate market reports on a monthly basis, feel free to check back to see the change – or e-mail me if you want us to analyze any particular figures or cities we don’t cover here.

Miami Shores Real Estate Market Report

There are currently 167 listings in Miami Shores:
(1 more than last month)

Highest priced listing is $3.5 million (bayfront home located at 1680 NE 104th Street)
Lowest priced listing is $89,900 (bank-owned located at 9338 NW 2 Avenue.)
Pending Sales (Properties under contract):28 (4 more than Last month)
Closed sales in February: 1 (9330 NE 12th Avenue sold for $397,500 – listed for $595,000 in March of 2008)

The Miami Shores Luxury Market is still the same – no sales over $1,000,000 in 2008 or 2009.

The Foreclosure and Short sale inventory has decreased which is good news for Miami Shores Real Estate, but we are not out of the wood works yet (is that an expression or did I just make that up?) – there are 9 short sales East of the Boulevard and no Bank Owned and the least expensive listing East of the Boulevard is the property located at 812 NE 92nd Street (Short Sale) priced at $288,000. There are a total of 52 short sales and 13 Bank owned properties in Miami Shores which is equivalent to 39% of the total inventory.

Bay Harbor Islands Real Estate Market Report

Bay Harbor Islands Real Estate

There are currently 22 single-family home listings in Bay Harbor Islands: (5 less than last month)

Highest priced listings are for $5,200,000 (9530 W. Broadview Drive – listed since March of 08 and 10200 W. Broadview Drive listed since January or 07)
Lowest priced listing is $499,000 (9970 E. Bay Harbor Drive – Villa – listed since Feb. 07 – starting price of $659,000)
Pending Sales (properties under contract):3 (2 more than last month)
Closed sales in February: 0

The Bay Harbor Islands Real Estate Market is not easy to explain – with very little movement (2 sales in 2008 and none yet this year) – but there are no short sales or bank owned properties listed. No movement in this market is good news; it means no transient traffic and means people are happy to live there – I’m keeping a close eye on Bay Harbor Island.

Surfside Real Estate Market Report

There are currently 68 single-family home listings in Surfside: (5 less than last month)

Highest priced listing is $6,900,000 (this one makes me smile because it is a hotel listed as a single-family residence with 24 bedrooms – located at 9578 Collins Avenue).
The next highest Priced listing that is actually a single-family home is $6,290,000 (Bayfront 5 bedroom/ 4 bathroom home at 1249 Biscaya Drive)
Lowest priced listing is $274,000 for a short-sale at 9156 Harding Avenue
Pending Sales (properties under contract): 4
Closed sales in February: 4 (2 more than last month)

Surfside Real Estate has been recuperating slowly – we’ve seen a decrease in inventory, also a decrease in pricing, but some movement as well. The Luxury Surfside Real Estate market is also at a stand still with only 2 luxury single-family home sales in 2008 and 2009 – one for $3.2 million and the other for $2.4 million.

There are currently 195 condo listings in Surfside: (2 more than last month)

Highest priced listing: $2,525,000 a 3/3 at Azure

Lowest priced listing: $138,000 a 1/1 at Carlisle on the Ocean

Pending Sales (properties under contract):14 (2 less than last month)

Closed sales in February: 7 (3 more than last month – all under $320,000)

Surfside Condo inventory has been stable with no major changes. The reality is that you are on the ocean with a great beach in a pretty tranquil neighborhood that is very close to South Beach’s action. Although all recorded sales have been low, remember that the St. Regis Bal Harbour is HOT! Becoming one of the most sought out Miami Beach Luxury Condo Projects outside of SoFi – and those sales will not be recorded for a while, since they are still in pre-construction. Crazy to think anyone is building today, but Luxury is Luxury!

Fisher Island Real Estate Market Report

There are currently 161 listings in Fisher Island: (2 more than last month)

Highest priced listing: $30,000,000 for an exclusive Oceanside 5/5.5 home with artwork and all!
Lowest priced listing: $335,000 for a 1/1 at Marina Village
Pending Sales: 4 (2 more than last month)
Closed sales in February : 3 (Oceanside 7831 for $3,100,000 – Oceanside 7631 for $2,625,000 – and Bayside Villas 7631 for $1,025,000)

As much as people think that Fisher Island defines the Miami Beach Luxury Real Estate Market, it really is in a league of its own with 6 luxury sales this year alone. But don’t think that the economy doesn’t affect the rich – there are currently 13 short sales within the Fisher Island Condo Inventory ranging from $3.1 million for a Bayside Village condo to $695,000 for a Seaside Villas unit.

Aventura Real Estate Market Report

There are currently 1881 condo listings in Aventura: (83 less than last month)

Highest priced listing: $6,000,000 for a 4/6 at Porto Vita
Lowest priced listing: $5,000 for a covered parking space at The Venture (they decreased the price by $7,000)
Pending sales: 207 (4 more than last month)
Closed sales in February: 57 (six more than last month)

The highest closed sale in February was at Peninsula for $875,000 and the lowest was for $71,500 for a 1 bedroom / 1 bathroom residence at Point East.

Our South American clients love Aventura Real Estate because of the shopping!! Although the proximity to the beach and airports doesn’t hurt either. I you ever hear that Rick is looking for me, you will find me at Aventura Mall 🙂

Biscayne Park Real Estate Market Report

There are currently 43 single-family listings in Biscayne Park: (3 more than lst month)

Highest priced listing $699,000 (11500 Griffing Blvd – a canal front home listed for $735,000 on October of this year)
Lowest priced listing $132,300 (11400 NE 8 Ave – bank owned home listed for $349,000 since December of 2006)
Pending sales (properties under contract):3 (2 less than last month)
Closed sales in February: 2 (f$220,000 for the property located at 11325 NE 8th Court and $184,900 for the property located at 11921 NE 8th Avenue)

Biscayne Park Real Estate is priced well for first time home buyers. It’s a great neighborhood nestled in between historic trees, with its own police force and improving code enforcement. Many people discard it from the get-go, but it’s one of those neighborhoods with great architecture and descent urban planning that I’ve always liked.

El Portal Real Estate Market Report

There are 39 listings in El Portal: (3 less than last month)

Highest priced listing is $549,000 (69 NE 87 St – listed since August 06, started at $749,900)
Lowest priced listing $150,000 (for a short sale at 440 NW 90th St)
Pending sales (properties under contract):8 (3 less than last month)
Closed sales in February: 1 (345 NE 90th Street sold for $305,000)

El Portal Real Estate has been slow, and although we are seeing improvement in the last few months, it is the slowest in recuperating in the area. Over 51% of its inventory is either a bank-owned property or a short sale – once we see those numbers begin to decrease is when a positive light will shine on El Portal.

**all information obtained from the SouthEast Florida Multiple Listing Service**