Timing is everything for Related Group with Brickell Heights

The Related Group is pacing itself in this new development boom so it doesn’t flood the market with too much supply – a strategy it’s employing in Miami’s wealthy Brickell area.

The developer broke ground on both towers of the 49-story Brickell Heights in July 2014. After selling out about 95 percent of the 358 units in the east tower, Related has now launched sales of the 332 units in the west tower. Given that the construction schedule was the same for both, they could have put them on the market at the same time.

“The way Related programs all its condo development is we don’t want to flood the market with too much product at once,” said Arden Karson, Related’s project manager for Brickell Heights. “We are strategic in how we release inventory. It allows us to go to market with a lot of pent up demand.”

See the photo for renderings of Brickell Heights 02 – the west tower.

According to Cranespotters.com, about 6,400 condos are scheduled to be completed east of Interstate 95 in South Florida this year, followed by 6,700 units in 2016 and 5,000 in 2017. That’s assuming all of those projects move forward as scheduled. Related is once again the largest developer in this round of building.

Brickell Heights, located on South Miami Avenue between 9th and 10th Street, is scheduled to be completed in early winter 2017, Karson said.

Karson said Brickell Heights has a pricing advantage over much of the new product in downtown Miami. It starts in the low $300’s per square foot for the smaller units and goes up to $500 per square foot. Many other new condos on Brickell are listed in excess of $600 per square foot.

Related can offer a lower price point at Brickell Heights because it purchased the site for a reasonable price in 2013 and locked in construction costs before the explosion of development activity, he added.

“We bought it at a different point in the cycle so our buyers can experience tremendous value,” Karson said.

Units in Brickell Heights range from 600 square feet to 2,400 square feet for the penthouses. Amenities include a 35,000-square-foot Equinox gym, a Soul Cycle studio, and several restaurants. The east tower will include 35,000 square feet of office condos, which are mostly sold out, she said.

 
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Story by: Brian Bandell – Jan 26, 2015, 5:01pm EST
Photo Courtesy: Related Group – Biz Journals

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