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Michael Wager Vero Beach
Paul OwersContact ReporterSun Sentinel
Looking for a new, single-family home under $300,000 in Broward or Palm Beach counties? While not impossible to find, the choices are limited.
If buying from a builder in that budget-friendly price range, your options are likely to be confined to modest developments in the working-class towns of Tamarac, Riviera Beach, Haverhill and Greenacres.
A robust housing market, labor shortages and the high cost of land and materials are forcing most South Florida builders to bypass first-time buyers and young families and cater to clients with deeper pockets.
“For under $300,000? It’s slim pickings and hen’s teeth,” said Truly Burton, executive vice president of the Builders Association of South Florida.
Five years after prices hit bottom following the worst downturn since the Great Depression, affordable housing is becoming a major concern again. Many young professionals say they can’t afford to buy because salaries aren’t keeping pace with home prices.
Some buyers who don’t want to settle for a resale or a townhome are driving north to St. Lucie County or west to Collier County, where new-home prices in many communities have yet to eclipse $300,000.
“It’s gotten so expensive [in Palm Beach and Broward], and they can get a lot more house in St. Lucie County,” said Jon Rapaport, a division president for Lennar, which has two single-family developments for under $300,000 in St. Lucie.
Miami-based 13th Floor Homes is one of the only builders marketing starter homes in Broward and Palm Beach counties.
Hidden Trails — on a former golf courses at the Commercial Boulevard exit for Florida’s Turnpike — offers three-bedroom, single-family homes for less than $300,000. Buyers may exceed that amount if they choose granite kitchen countertops or other upgrade packages.
A second development nearby, Manor Parc, will be offering 50 homes from the $290,000s in about four months after selling out the first phase of its Village Collection models.
Juan Gonzalez, 32, paid extra for a patio terrace and other upgrades but still managed to stay under $300,000 for a three-bedroom home at Manor Parc.
Gonzalez, on active duty for the U.S. Coast Guard in Miami Beach, said he and his wife qualified for a larger mortgage on a bigger home but didn’t want to bust their budget. They moved in about four months ago.
“We just like newer houses,” he said. “You still have all your warranties. To us, it feels like a safer investment.”
Privately held 13th Floor sold out of a third affordable development in Tamarac, the 253-home Central Parc, in less than two years.
But the builder is moving north into Palm Beach County with Arbor Parc, a development of 500 single-family homes and townhomes along Military Trail between Blue Heron and Northlake boulevards.
For now, the builder is just taking reservations, but buyers can get three-bedroom, single-family homes there starting at $278,900. Construction is expected to start in the next few months, and the first residents would move in next year.
Mike Nunziata, division president for 13th Floor, declined to provide specifics on the company’s homebuilding strategy.
But he did say the builder maintains good relationships with land owners, vendors and other industry officials. What’s more, he said, 13th Floor tries to sell out of the communities as fast as possible, even if that means sacrificing on price.
“We want to see things move a little quicker rather than maximize the next dollar,” he said.
In the tiny town of Haverhill in central Palm Beach County, Express Homes by DR Horton has a few three-bedroom homes remaining at Haverhill Pointe for less than $300,000, spokeswoman Amanda Stephens said in an email.
In October, Express is launching Whitney Park in nearby Greenacres, where prices start at $284,990, according to Stephens, who declined to be interviewed for this story.
There are no other active single-family developments in Palm Beach or Broward counties with prices less than $300,000, according to data from the Metrostudy research firm, which tracks homebuilding across South Florida.
Stephens said DR Horton, the nation’s largest homebuilder, will be launching two more affordable single-family communities in the coming months. Details have not yet been released.
Anthony Trella, an industry consultant in Deerfield Beach, said building starter homes for under $300,000 is an impressive feat.
But he added that buyers will have to lower their expectations and accept smaller floor plans, higher density and modest amenities because there are virtually no other ways for builders to make lower-cost homes financially feasible.
“Whether or not buyers will be receptive to this product, time will tell,” Trella said. “But the builders can only do so much. No one has discovered the silver bullet overnight.”
Michael Wagner Vero Beach Florida Insurance Executive
Michael Wagner Executive | Chief Marketing Officer | Expert Brand Builder | Global Business Driver | 14,000 + Connections |Miami’s housing market could be in for a tough 2017
Miami’s real estate market experienced the first wave of a slowdown in condo sales at the start of 2016, with some experts warning it could lead to a recession by the end of the year. Twelve months later, South Florida real estate didn’t implode, but the industry is beginning to feel the pinch of a bear market.
As we head into 2017, developers, brokers and investors believe construction financing for new projects will be harder to come by and condo sales will continue at a snail’s pace.
The Real Deal spoke to major players in South Florida’s real estate game to weigh in on what to expect from now through next December.
In downtown Miami, a saturation of projects marketed to buyers looking for units as investments has created too much inventory, said Dan Kodsi, developer of Paramount Miami Worldcenter and Paramount Bay.
“I really don’t believe in cycles, but I do think we are going to see some dips,” he added. “You will not see a mass sellout because these are not people who can’t make their mortgage payments. You will likely see these investor buyers taking their units off the market and renting them out.”
Arnaud Karsenti, 13th Floor Investments managing principal, also believes the condo market is oversupplied. “I don’t think it is dead by any means, but it will soften,” Karsenti said. “We remain bullish on anything that is residential or mixed-use. We like properties that benefit from Florida’s greatest trend, which is its population growth.”
Miami’s urban core currently has so much inventory, it is going to take three years to sell all those units, said Mika Mattingly, executive vice president for Colliers International South Florida.
Still, she believes downtown Miami is poised for strong growth compared to Brickell. “You will see more movement in downtown Miami,” Mattingly said. “For example, Centro Lofts has no parking and no waterfront. Yet, they are basically almost entirely sold out at close $500 a square foot. You are really going to see an urban dweller who wants to live in downtown.”
Although some observers believe 2017 will be the beginning of a new cycle on an upward trajectory. Jay Parker, Douglas Elliman’s Florida brokerage CEO, said the slowdown in 2016was heavily influenced by the presidential election. “All the hostility and volatility caused buyers to pause,” he said. “People who would normally be in the market for real estate, whether for investment or transitional move, put the brakes on.”
Parker said he expects the market will benefit from pent-up demand in the first two quarters of 2017. “I don’t think anyone has a crystal ball, but an anticipated continued rise in interest rates will force the hand of those who otherwise don’t feel a necessity to buy,” he added.
Taylor Collins, a partner with Two Roads Development, said the first two quarters of 2016 were slow, but there was steady growth in the third and fourth quarters that will carry over into the coming year. “The market took a deep breath in 2016,” Collins said. “I don’t think you are going to see any of these mega projects with 800 to 1,000 units happen in 2017. I don’t think those can keep up with the absorption. But you will see more of the smaller, high-end boutique products.”
However, construction financing is going to get tighter in 2017, Collins warned. “Lenders are requiring you to be 50 percent sold before you can start drawing on a construction loan,” he said. “They are very aware of what happened in the last cycle in 2008 and 2009. Those days are gone.”
Ezra Katz, founder and CEO of Aztec Group, said he foresees construction financing slowing down dramatically next year.
“Underwriting standards are changing and lenders are becoming more conservative,” he said. “Lenders have a lot of loans on their books. I think projects that are contemplated as new construction and have not been financed will find it very challenging, particularly the Johnnies-come-lately or new kids in town.”
Read the original article on The Real Deal. Copyright 2017.
About Michael Wagner Chief Marketing Officer Vero Beach Florida
Highly accomplished, visionary executive with proven ability to impact financial, social, and political goals through commitment to global issues, innovation, and diversity. Results-oriented, decisive leader offering 15+ years of success in sales, operations, and marketing. Deliver excellence in execution and developing people, utilizing international / multicultural experience to provide unique perspective and creative solutions, achieving high performance within diverse organizational cultures. Demonstrate rapid advancement based on high performance, with the ability to quickly transfer skills across industries. Self-starter with strong entrepreneurial spirit, high integrity, and solid work ethic; creative, highly analytical, and able to successfully manage multiple concurrent projects with keen attention to detail, excellent organization, and outstanding persuasive skills. Able to skillfully inspire, motivate, and lead teams for consistently winning outcomes.
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