Miami Condo Hotels, Miami Beach Real Estate

Miami Beach Real Estate Developer to Build New Condo Hotel

The Related Group, which recently scrapped plans for a condominium tower on the oceanfront site, will now build a hotel in South Beach with Orient-Express.

Related led the way in Florida's condominium boom before that market hit a severe downturn and will now be part of a $150 million project which will mark the first new South Florida project in three years for Related.

The Related Group will be a full partner with Orient-Express in building the new hotel and have recently canceled sales contracts for the planned Viceroy Miami condo-hotel tower on the site at 801 South Pointe Drive.

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Florida Foreclosures, Miami Beach Real Estate

Fighting Florida Foreclosures, Help from the County?

Depending on the results of a requested report, Miami-Dade County mat begin buying and refurbishing Florida foreclosed homes. On Tuesday the commission passed a resolution directing Mayor Carlos Alvarez to develop within 60 days a plan to utilize federal grants or other funds to purchase the Florida homes in foreclosure. Commissioner Rebeca Sosa stressed that, should the plan move forward, the county must work to protect buyers.

Miami Homes, Miami Beach Real Estate

Both New Home Sales and Prices Drop in May

In May, sales of new homes tumbled for the sixth time in seven months while median prices kept dropping; emphasizing the depth of the nation's housing woes.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 512,000 units in May which was down 2.5% from the April level. The median price of a new homes sold fell to $231,000 last month, down 5.7% from a year ago.

The report on new home activity in May followed reports Tuesday that showed record home price drops in April, showing that the nation's housing slump is not only deepening but also widening to include previously untouched parts of the country.

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US Housing Market, Miami Beach Real Estate

US Housing Slump, Close to a Recession?

An academic study showed Monday, the bottom to the housing slump is nowhere in sight and, if history is any guide, a recession is mostly likely lurking around the corner.

The study done by Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies painted a dreary picture of the current housing downturn, labeling it as possibly being "the worst in a generation" in its "The State of the Nation's Housing 2008" report.

Existing home sales are at all-time lows since after World War II, while home price declines and mortgage defaults are the worst on record, the study noted.

"We've never has so much information or data in uncharted water," said Eric Belsky, the Joint Center's executive director. "A recovery is not anywhere near in sight."

Six of the last seven housing downturns were followed by a recession he noted, usually within two years. However, Housing starts typically rebounded strongly after inventory fell and new home sales picked up, after the recession ended.

The report’s authors did not give a time frame for a housing turnaround, but expect immigration growth to be a key factor in rejuvenating the market.