With the significant increase in downtown residential properties — many of them rental apartments — in tandem with construction of multipurpose developments, retail stores, restaurants, supermarkets, a mass transit hub and cultural institutions, Miami’s downtown has become a dynamic and vibrant area.
According to a February report from the city’s Downtown Development Authority, rental construction was “very active,” with around 13,000 units proposed or under construction. Rents downtown have risen 5 percent annually on average for the last three years.
And while there is evidence of saturation in the market for high-­end condos, developers are starting to redirect their sights toward buyers in lower income brackets. For example, Nir Shoshani hopes to attract professionals aged 30 to 45 to a 500 ­unit condominium tower called Canvas, for which he broke ground in February. The average unit will cost about $400,000 and be just 860 square feet.
The building rush seeks to capitalize on a growing number of jobs in the city’s business and financial sector, which serves hundreds of banks, private equity firms and hedge funds. In fact, businesses in the city are expected to add almost 20,000 office jobs over the next five years, the agency said, estimating that some 385,000 square feet of new office space are under development.
With the new jobs come new arrivals, and much of that workforce are expected to live in Miami — in large part to avoid the horrendous rush hour traffic. Since 2000, the resident population of downtown has doubled, and an additional 40 percent or so of growth is predicted through 2019.
These changes make Miami fertile ground for the retail and services market.