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Miami Beach Waterfront Homes Sold in 2012

When it comes to Miami Beach real estate, a lot has happened in a year, especially when it comes to Miami Beach homes and the waterfront/luxury market.  There are 145 Miami Beach waterfront homes for sale right now ranging from a $750,000 North Beach home on Biscayne Point, to the previously JLo owned $40 Million North Bay Road home (close to Miami Heat’s Chris Bosh).

2012 marked the highest single-family home residence sale in the history of Miami Beach when  3 Indian Creek, originally listed for $60 Million, sold in August, for $47 Million! This sale, in addition to the Miami Beach condo market boom, marks the beginning of a crazy luxury market that many even interpret as another bubble.  The truth is that Miami Beach remains to be desirable not just to locals, but to the whole world – it is an escape from brutal winters to a great global hub destination for both primary homes, vacation and second home getaways.  Let’s break down all the 2012 waterfront home sales by island to better understand the nature of each. The Median Listing price for a Miami Beach waterfront home is currently $6.9 Million.  Out of the 113 waterfront homes sold in 2012, the median sold price was $2.8 Million in 2012 – let’s look at those numbers in detail.

Star Island Home Sales

2 Star Island waterfront homes sold – averaging $1,221 per square foot with the highest sale at $14.325 Million for the house located at 29 Star Island Dr – with 10,160 sf of living space, 5 bedrooms, 40,000 sf lot and 100 feet of water frontage.

Palm Island Home Sales

4 Palm Island homes sold on the water –  highest sale at $14.5 Million for the house located at 70 Palm Ave. with 19,000 sf of living space, 9 bedrooms and 100? of water frontage.  The average price per square foot for Palm Island homes coming in at $1,211.

Hibiscus Island Home Sales

4 Hibiscus Island homes sold on the water – price ranging between $5.85 and $4.5 Million.  The highest sale of $5,850,000 was for the home located at 265 N. Hibiscus Dr. with over 5,000 sf of living space, 11,375 sf lot, 5 bedrooms and 65? of water frontage. The average price per square foot in Palm Island was $1,099.

Venetian Islands Home Sales

There were 13 Venetian Island waterfront homes sold – prices ranging between $1.45 Million to $6.45 Million, with an average price per sf of $804.  The highest sale was for the very dated home built in 1995, located at 835 E Dilido Dr, with over 7,000 sf of living space, 26,816 sf lot, 6 bedrooms and almost 200 feet of water frontage.

Sunset Islands Home Sales

There were 16 Sunset Island homes sold on the water – prices ranging between $1.67 million and $12.9 Million.  The average price per sq.ft. coming in at $976.  The highest sale was one of our featured Miami Mod homes located at 1835 W 27th St., with 22,192 sf of land, over 10,000 sf of living space, 7 bedrooms and over 150 feet of water frontage.

North Bay Road Home Sales

There were 6 North Bay Rd waterfront homes sold this year.  Their prices ranging between $5.5 to $10.6 Million and averaging $964 per sq.ft.  The highest sale was for Ricky Martin’s Miami Beach home boasting over 9,000 sf of living space and located at 5130 N Bay Rd, with over 19,000 sf of land, 7 bedrooms and 105 feet of open bay water frontage.

La Gorce Island Home Sales

There were 2 waterfront La Gorce Island homes sold.  One for $5.75 Million and the other for $11 Million and averaging $908 per sq.ft.  The highest sale was all about land with more than 1.78 acres (77,748 sf), located at 100 La Gorce Dr Cr with over 10,000 sf of living space, 7 bedrooms and 180 degrees of water views.

Allison Island Home Sales

There were 5 waterfront Allison Island homes sold on the water in 2012.  Their prices ranging from $2.7 Million to $8325 Million with an average price per square foot of $685. The highest sale was for the brand new construction located at 100 6633 Allison Rd with over 12,000 sf of living space, 7 bedrooms and 207 feet of water frontage.

North Bay Island Home Sales

There were no waterfront homes sold in N. Bay Island

Normandy Island Home Sales

There were 13 waterfront homes sold in Normandy Island, which historically, has been the least expensive waterfront real estate in Miami Beach.  They ranged in price between $770,000 and $2.6 Million for the bay front home located at 425 N Shore Dr – with 4,700 sf of living space, 4 bedrooms, over 11,000 SF of land and 65 feet of water frontage.  The average price per sq.ft. in Normandy Island coming in at $346.

Biscayne Point Home Sales

9 Biscayne Point waterfront homes sold in 2012 ranging between $420,000 for a foreclosure, to $2.125 Million for the home located at 1550 Daytonia Rd.  This completely remodeled Key West Style home has over 3,000 sf of living space, 5 bedrooms, 11,250 sf lot and 75 feet of water frontage.  The average price per sq.ft. in Biscayne Point coming in at $393.

Stillwater Island Home Sales

7 Stillwater Island waterfront homes sold ranging between $780,500 for a foreclosure, to $1.8 Million for the home at 1370 Stillwater Dr – with 3,000 sf of living space, 5 bedrooms, 8,000 sf lot and 50 feet of water frontage.  The average price per square feet for Stillwater being $590.

Pinetree Drive Home Sales

There were 6 Pinetree waterfront homes sold ranging between $1.75 for a short sale, to $13.1 Million.  The highest sale of $13,100,000 was for the mediterranean mansion and one of Pinetree’s historic gems located at 4821 Pinetree Dr, with over 18,000 sf of living space, over 80,000 sf lot, 13 bedrooms and 200 feet of water frontage.

Built in 1928 by renowned architect L.M. Barrett for Byron D. Miller Esq. (president of the F.W. Woolworth Co.), this stunning 18,000-plus-square-foot gated compound in Miami Beach is a rare historical masterpiece that has hosted more political dignitaries than any other home in Miami. The estate commands 250 feet of water frontage and is situated on a two-acre parcel on the widest span of the Indian Creek waterway.

The average price per sq.ft. in Pinetree coming in at $660.


Miami Beach’s waterfront housing market has not only recuperated, but has come ahead faster than anyone could have predicted.  We are asked often why we think this is and the answer is very simple:  Miami Beach is still coveted amongst celebrities and the wealthy because there is a certain lifestyle you can’t get anywhere else, because of the fact that we are so easily accessible, because of our year-round great weather, and simply because Miami is a beautiful place. To those clients I urged and pleaded to buy back in 2011….now you see why – all the pending doom energy has come and gone and no one even felt it, so now you’ll pay a bit more, but it will always be worth it. Take a look at this graph and how different islands compare.  Star Island is still at the top of the game, but followed closely by Palm Island and Hibiscus Island.  The Venetian Islands still offer a great option when compared to The Sunset Islands, North Bay Road and La Gorce Island. Normandy Island continues to be the least expensive waterfront real estate in Miami Beach and Pinetree Drive will continue to offer homes that are historically significant in a unique setting.

We have come a long way and I’m sure home sellers are happy that the market has come back and doing well.  There are still great opportunities out there and we look forward to continuing to be your Miami Beach Real Estate Resource and also to working with you, as your REALTORS, in 2013.

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