Dive Brief:

• Miami developer CMC Group has snagged a $236 million construction loan for the 64-story Brickell Flatiron condominium tower, currently under construction in the city’s downtown, Multi-Housing News reported. 

• Of the building’s 549 units, roughly 60% have sold or are under contract. The units are priced from $500,000 to $15.5 million. At an expected 736 feet tall, it will be among the country’s tallest residential buildings.

• The luxury property’s amenities include a rooftop pool, spa and gym, as well as a lap pool, yoga studio, executive meeting room and a billiard and cigar room. Italian cabinets, doors and marble floors will be used in the units.

Dive Insight:

The loan secured for the Brickell Flatiron may be an anomaly in today’s multifamily market, as The Wall Street Journal recently reported that some financial institutions are stepping back from taking on new, high-end multifamily projects, particularly rentals, amid a glut of supply.

In Miami, observers say the condo market, too, is overbuilt and should expect to see sales and prices decline. That has led some owners to put their properties up for rent, upping competition in the city's already robust rental market, MarketWatch reported.

Miami was named by Forbes as the worst city in the country for renters this year. Along with low vacancies of 2.2%, rents require an average of 36% of local median income. Still, just 10.7% of multifamily projects there from 2014 to 2016 were in the bottom third of the market, while 69.4% were in the luxury sector.

Nationwide, the multifamily sector has a disproportionate share of luxury projects, which could drive increased focus on affordable and market-rate properties to feed overwhelming demand in those categories.

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