A June 2011 photo of the downtown Miami skyline (Credit: Marc Averette) and a foreclosure sign

Once a hotbed of foreclosure activity during the housing crash, Miami-Dade County continued to drain its backlog of lender-owned properties in September, according to a newly released report.

The report from real estate research firm CoreLogic shows the county’s foreclosure rate fell 36 percent year-over-year to 2.2 percent. Delinquencies, the precursor to foreclosures, also dropped by 33 percent to 5.3 percent in the same time period.

South Florida as a whole was once the nation’s king of foreclosures, boasting a rate of one in every 269 homes in 2013. Those properties were were some of the first to be snapped up by investors as Miami-Dade began recovering from the housing crash, eventually giving way to higher home prices and stronger home ownership.

Even so, the county still has far to go before it beats the national rate of 0.9 percent.

And while worry is brewing that Miami-Dade is facing another residential market crunch, market watchers have contended that several factors are protecting the metro from another foreclosure onslaught.

Its historically high rate of all-cash home purchases means homeowners have more equity protecting them from banks, and new developments typically require 50 percent deposits, meaning buyers are more reluctant to walk away from their units. — Sean Stewart-Muniz

250 Northwest 24th Street. Inset: David Lombardi and Moishe Mana

A major owner in Wynwood sold a retail building to Moishe Mana for $16.42 million. 

Lombardi Properties sold the 18,764-square-foot building at 350 Northwest 24th Street and 301 and 311 Northwest 23rd Street in Wynwood, Daniel Lombardi told The Real Deal. The deal closed on Friday.

The sale price breaks down to $875 per square foot for the building and about $437 a foot for the land, which totals 37,597 square feet.

The tenants, which include Shots Miami, designer Gabriela Cadena, AMLS Indoor Soccer, tech office Tres Mares and Mobile Arts Production, have long-term leases in place, Lombardi said. He and his father, broker and principal David Lombardi, brokered the deal.

Property records show the Lombardi entity, Pompei Warehouses LLC, paid slightly more than $1 million for the property in 2002. It was built in 1968. It’s on the same block as Panther Coffee and Coyo Taco, just west of Northwest Second Avenue.

Lombardi is part of the group of early Wynwood investors who began acquiring properties and turning them into adaptive reuse projects starting in the early 2000s. The firm nearly 200,000 square feet of building space and nearly 6 acres of Wynwood land including the Wynwood Yard.

Daniel Lombardi said the company isn’t currently looking to sell more land. The developer, which completed Wynwood Lofts in 2004, plans to break ground on a small retail project at 160 Northwest 26th Street early next year aimed at attracting smaller retailers who have been priced out of Northwest Second Avenue. The 8,000-square-foot retail project has secured tenants in the $60 per square foot range.

Mana, meanwhile, owns more than 30 acres in Wynwood, where his Mana Wynwood complex is based. In September, the city of Miami approved a special area plan that allows for increased density for Mana’s planned 25-acre development, a two-phase project that would have thousands of residential units, public space, a cultural component and more.

Mana’s Pompeii Realty LLC purchased the retail building. The deal has not yet cleared county records, but Mana companies own properties on the west side of the block, including the parking lots and buildings directly next to the building Mana just purchased.

The top brokerages across the U.S. will all be joining The Real Deal in Shanghai this November for our second Real Estate Showcase & Forum in China. Representatives from Douglas Elliman, Sotheby’s International, Town Residential, Brown Harris Stevens and many others will join China’s top brokers and most active investors at the event.

The event will take place at the five-star Jing An Shangri-La Hotel from Nov. 17 to 19. Our 2016 show will bring prominent industry professionals and investors from the United States to Shanghai, including former New York Gov. George Pataki. Douglas Elliman chief Howard Lorber, HFZ’s Ziel Feldman and Witkoff’s Steve Witkoff have recently joined our growing list of distinguished speakers, who will share market insight on key panels throughout the event.

From left: Howard Lorber, Ziel Feldman and Steve Witkoff

Other participants include Bruce Mosler (Cushman & Wakefield), Sharif El-Gamal (Soho Properties), Don Peebles (Peebles Corporation), Christopher Wein (Great Gulf), Alan Rosenbaum (GuardHill Financial), Chris Marlin (Lennar), Nick Mastroianni II (U.S. Immigration Fund), Jay Neveloff (Kramer Levin), David Long (Grand China Fund), Nikki Field (Sotheby’s International), Jennifer Wang (PwC Shanghai), John Van Fleet (USC Marshall School of Business) and Jason Lee (Six Sigma). The sessions will compliment workshops and more than 100 exhibits of residential and commercial developments.

Clockwise from top left: Bruce Mosler, Sharif El-Gamal, Don Peebles, Christopher Wein, Jonathan Miller, Jay Neveloff, Nick Mastroianni II and Chris Marlin

A report issued this spring said Chinese investment in existing U.S. real estate assets could total more than $218 billion from 2016 through 2020. But there is a major disconnect between Chinese investors and U.S. developers and marketers owing to differences in culture, language, time zone, Internet freedoms and market familiarity. The Real Deal’s U.S. Real Estate Forum and Showcase will provide an arena for dealmaking and relationship-building in this notoriously difficult market.

For tickets go to https://yoopay.cn/event/20156193. If you will be joining us at the event, you can get a discounted room at the Jing An Shangri-La by booking on their website, choosing “Group” for the special rate option and inputting the code REA151116. For more information about programming, contact Heather Grossmann at hg@TheRealDeal.com. For sponsorship opportunities, contact Ross Fox at rf@TheRealDeal.com.

Want to stay up-to-date on Chinese investment in North American real estate? Subscribe to our China Watch newsletter.

Sixteen months after breaking ground, the contentious Privé at Island Estates luxury condo project in Aventura has topped off its two towers at 16 stories.

Developers BH3 and Gary Cohen, along with general contractor Suffolk Construction, held a luncheon/Halloween-themed celebration for the project’s construction workers over the weekend to commemorate the occasion. With both towers topped off and their concrete shells completed, the developers expect to complete Privé and its 160 units within the next eight months.

Condos at the development range in size from 2,585 square feet to 9,500 square feet, and are priced between $2.1 million and $11.4 million for a penthouse with a rooftop pool. As of late October, 106 of the units are under contract. Amenities at the project include a 10,000-square-foot fitness center, cafe, dog grooming salon, social rooms, a library, and separate cigar and wine rooms.

Privé, which sits on an island spanning roughly 8 acres at 5000 Island Estate Drive, has been embroiled in litigation from neighboring homeowners who allege the developers are violating a 34-year-old legal settlement preventing any new condo developments on the island. The fight has at several times reached a boiling point: two residents rammed their Porsche into a sidewalk the developers were building, and the developers later fired back with a $225 million lawsuit against several homeowners, though it’s since been dismissed.

In a rare peek at the financial inner-workings of a condo project, The Real Deal acquired a memorandum sent by the developer to lenders requesting $147 million in construction debt. The document put a spotlight on everything from the $48 million in equity BH3 and Cohen sank into Privé, down to the $47 million spent on concrete alone. — Sean Stewart-Muniz and Katherine Kallergis

Rendering of WYN 26

Two Venezuelan investment groups have teamed up to launch a new condo project in Wynwood, as the artsy Miami neighborhood continues to attract more residential development.

WYN 26, a 15-unit building with ground floor retail space at 50 and 58 Northwest 26th Street will mark the first development in the United States for the Alvarez Group and the Palmar Group, Enrique Alvarez, a director of the joint entity told The Real Deal. The families, involved in the construction industry, have co-developed and built low-income housing in Venezuela and Panama for 12 years.

“We decided to come to the United States and invest here,” Alvarez said. “Even though we [build] low income housing in Venezuela and Panama, we decided to come here to do high-end. We are doing a boutique building, upscale that [fits into] the Wynwood idea.”

The families are investing $2.5 million in equity in the project, he told TRD.

Sales for WYN 26 began a few weeks ago, and so far three units have been presold to buyers from Venezuela, Panama and Miami, Alvarez said.

Rendering of WYN 26

Designed by architect Antonio Rodriguez, the modern-style building will have five floors of condos, sized in three configurations: two-bedroom, two bathroom units with 1,057 square feet; and two bedroom, two-and-a-half bedroom units with 1,416 square feet and 1,457 square feet. Each unit will come with two parking spaces.

Prices range from the mid-$500,000s to the mid-$800,000s, or between $520 per square foot to $560 per square foot. To keep maintenance costs down, the building will not have a pool or fitness center, Alvarez said.

The 1,400-square-foot ground floor retail space is also for sale for $875,000, or $625 per square foot.

Deposits required for the condos are 40 percent, rather than the typical 50 percent found in Miami, “to be more competitive,” Alvarez said. The equity the families are putting in also lowered the amount of deposits necessary, he added.

The group is in talks with Ocean Bank and hopes to receive about $4.5 million in financing, he said. Construction is expected to begin in about April and will take one year, Alvarez said.

Wynwood is booming with new development, as it transforms from a warehouse and discount retail district into a flourishing commercial and residential neighborhood. A slew of high-density mixed-use projects have been proposed that could altogether add about 1,000 residential units and 3.9 million square feet of retail space.

A flurry of high-end shops have also opened including Warby Parker, Marine Layer, Illesteva and Shinola, and Scotch & Soda is opening soon, while new dining spots include Wynwood Diner, KYU, Salty Donut and Federal Donuts. Other nearby businesses include Ducati, Panther Coffee, Wynwood Kitchen & Bar, R House, Gravity Brewery and Boxelder Craft Beer Market.

Alvarez said that’s why the investors chose Wynwood for their first U.S. project. “With all the development happening in Wynwood, with all the artists’ galleries, shops, restaurants, the atmosphere, it’s a very nice area,” Alvarez said. “We love it and we decided to invest here.”

Rendering of Alstom’s proposed light rail project

Miami Beach city officials were on a mission earlier this year when they fast-tracked a light rail project that could, eventually, connect the beach to the mainland.

But the city’s haste may have left it in a vulnerable negotiating position.

After a months-long bidding process among three contenders, city commissioners in July chose Miami Tramlink Partners to build a light-rail system in South Beach, according to the Miami Herald. But the partnership, led by French transportation firm Alstom, was judged by its train car designs and technology — not its proposal’s estimated price.

By choosing a winning proposal without first letting the bidders compete in terms of pricing, the city may end up swallowing a higher cost because it has weaker bargaining power, In The Public Interest founder Donald Cohen told the Herald.

The project’s original $380 million scope was already halved by cost-conscious city officials in October, paring it down to an estimated $244 million and scrapping half of the proposed South Beach loop.

Mayor Philip Levine contended that the city hasn’t made a commitment and can cancel the negotiations at any time if necessary.

A commission vote on the language of an interim agreement with Miami Tramlink Partners was pushed back from Wednesday to December. [Miami Herald] — Sean Stewart-Muniz

140 West Street and the co-working space Grind

From the New York website: Would you like to buy a co-working desk with that cable package? Telecommunications firm Verizon opened its first shared office space at 140 West Street in Manhattan earlier this year and plans to open similar spaces in Boston, Washington D.C. and London.

Unlike WeWork, which has to rent office space from landlords, Verizon actually owns plenty of office buildings in neighborhoods popular with yuppies. At 140 West Street, for example, Verizon owns the lower 10 floors (it sold the top portion to developer Ben Shaoul, who is converting them into condos).

Does that mean WeWork has to worry about a serious corporate rival emerging? Probably not. Verizon — which has been negotiating to acquire Yahoo for $4.8 billion — sees its co-working venture mainly as a neat way to use excess space and get “engaged in the [tech] community to see what’s going on,” according to John Vazquez, the firm’s head of real estate. And it isn’t even managing the space — co-working provider Grind is taking care of that, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Still, Verizon’s example shows that major corporations are becoming more comfortable with the concept of co-working. Firms like KPMG and Microsoft have bought WeWork memberships for their employees.  Meanwhile, Amazon offers free co-working spaces to promote its cloud-computing products. Earlier this year, Cadillac opened a co-working space in the ground floor of its Manhattan headquarters. The space also includes a coffee shop and art exhibits.

Telecom firm Sprint opened a tech accelerator in Kansas City. “There are a lot of smart people who are trying to figure out how to disrupt my industry,” Sprint’s vice president Kevin McGinnis told the Journal. “I need to be closer to them.” [WSJ] — Konrad Putzier

Andrea Greenberg and Jay Parker

Andrea Greenberg will join Douglas Elliman Florida in a newly created executive role after leaving Fortune International Realty this summer.

Greenberg will become the firm’s new chief marketing officer beginning Dec. 1, she told The Real Deal. 

A mainstay at Fortune, she left the real estate company as its vice president of marketing in August after more than 16 years. “My plan was to relax and travel a bit. I think it was time for a change and new challenges,” Greenberg told TRD.

At Fortune, she led the Jade brand from inception, which includes Jade Residences at Brickell Bay, Jade Beach, Jade Ocean and Jade Signature towers. The development marketing expert worked on Ritz-Carlton Residences Sunny Isles Beach, SLS Brickell and other Fortune projects. Before Fortune, she led marketing at Oceania for more than a decade.

Susie Glass, meanwhile, left Elliman to take over Greenberg’s position in August.

Greenberg was contacted by Douglas Elliman Florida CEO Jay Parker, who said she was “kind enough to take my call” about two years ago when he was first tipped off that she may be looking to make a move. She wasn’t, so Parker said he didn’t pursue it.

But the timing was right the second go-around, and the New York-based firm decided to wait to replace Glass and instead create a new role for Greenberg. Parker cited Greenberg’s depth of experience as a rarity.

Douglas Elliman Chairman Howard Lorber said her experience “will complement” Douglas Elliman’s growth in Florida, where the firm plans to expand geographically and by size.

“We have watched Andrea’s meaningful contribution to Florida’s development marketing industry from afar and are fortunate to now have her as part of our Development Marketing Team,” Lorber said in a statement provided to TRD.

At Elliman, Greenberg will focus on existing projects like the Ritz-Carlton Residences in Miami Beach, the Monad Terrace project in South Beach and some that have not yet launched sales.

Greenberg is joining Douglas Elliman during an overall slowdown in luxury condo sales in South Florida. She said regardless of where the market is in the cycle, marketing plays a role. “People think marketing gets easier at the end of a project,” she said, calling it a constant effort to be creative and innovative. “Certainly, the pressure is on.”

Once she starts in December, Greenberg will get to work. In the meantime, she has one more trip planned for Provence, France.

The Carillon Miami Beach

The North Carillon Beach Condominium Association has filed a new lawsuit against the building’s owner Z Capital Partners for alleged fraud and mismanagement, following the federal bankruptcy court in New York’s decision to reopen the project’s Chapter 11 case.

The suit is the latest in ongoing litigation against Z Capital Partners by the project’s condo associations, seeking more than $100 million in damages.

In August, the North Carillon Beach condo association filed a motion in federal bankruptcy court in New York asking the court to reopen the bankruptcy case, and sought unspecified damages for Z Capital’s alleged unlawful exploitation of the association and unit owners. It alleged that Z Capital fraudulently induced the association and unit owners to support its purchase of the oceanfront complex so it could gain control of the property and use its experience in asset stripping, cost cutting and restructuring for its own benefit.

The new suit, filed in federal bankruptcy court in New York, alleges unlawful conduct including “Z Capital’s fraudulent, unconscionable, unfair and deceptive inducement of the unit owners and the associations … through false e-mails and other means, to withdraw their objections to, and to support, Z Capital’s purchase of the hotel lot out of bankruptcy.”

The suit further alleges that Z Capital breached “virtually all of the binding promises it made regarding how [the Carillon] would be managed and operated.”

Z Capital, based in Lake Forest, Illinois, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Real Deal.

In January 2015, Z Capital bought the property at 6801 Collins Avenue, formerly called Canyon Ranch, out of bankruptcy court. The project’s condominium associations had originally opposed the bankruptcy auction results and had filed a lawsuit against the bankruptcy debtor.

The Carillon, whose original hotel dates back to 1958, now includes two condo towers completed in 2008: the South Tower and North Tower, as well as the Central Tower, which has both residential units and hotel suites. Z Capital owns nearly all the project’s amenities and common areas.

Since Z Capital’s purchase, the condo associations of the Central and South towers have filed separate suits against Z Capital. In May, condo owners at the Central Tower filed a suit seeking more than $100 million in damages, alleging that the private equity firm is artificially driving down property values to acquire units at below-market prices, and is assessing maintenance fees while denying unit owners access to building amenities and failing to allow them to see records.

In late March, the South Carillon Beach Condominium Association, made up of condo owners at the South Tower of the Carillon, also sued Z Capital, demanding access to financial records tied to millions of dollars in assessments.

Now, the North Carillon condo association alleges that Z Capital has “systematically stripped away, and failed to replace as promised, the top-quality wellness brand and lifestyle” of Canyon Ranch which condominium unit owners counted on when buying their units.

The suit alleges that Z Capital had promised that if its acquisition were approved, it would either retain the existing Canyon Ranch brand name or bring an “equally exclusive, luxurious, and renowned five-star brand” to the property, maintaining the focus on healthy living and wellness.

It also alleges that Z Capital decreased services and staffing in vital areas like security and amenities, while imposing maintenance and capital assessments that place the financial burden of operating and renovating the property on unit owners, even though all revenue flows solely to Z Capital.

The association further alleges that Z Capital breached contracts, including that it promised that the hotel operator would be a joint venture created among Adrian Zecha, founder of Amanresorts and director and non-executive chairman of General Hotel Management; Jonathan Breene, founder of Setai Group; and Z Capital, and that Z Capital would make good faith efforts to negotiate with Canyon Ranch to remain in the spa only.

Instead, the facilities at the Carillon are now being operated by Z Capital itself, according to the suit.

As a result, condo unit owners allege that that they have seen their property values fall, while hotel rates have plummeted, and that rooms, spa treatments and food and beverage deals are offered on discount websites.

South Beach skyline. Clockwise from left: Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Nelson Gonzalez, Mika Mattingly, Jay Parker and Kevin Tomlinson

For many of Miami real estate’s agents, the 2016 presidential election can’t be over fast enough.

Global uncertainty caused by the election has led potential buyers to hold off on offers, delayed closings and, depending on the outcome, buyers pulling out altogether, residential brokers told The Real Deal.

Luxury agent Kevin Tomlinson has two buyers who are waiting until after Tuesday to close on multimillion-dollar homes in Miami Beach. Tomlinson, who’s now licensed with Calibre International Realty, said one of his clients, a developer planning to buy a house in the $20 million range on North Bay Road, has a wait-and-see attitude.

Another client of his, a French buyer planning to close on a Sunset Islands home in the $4 million to $5 million range, believes that if Republican nominee Donald Trump wins, it will be “a Brexit-like disaster,” Tomlinson told TRD. “The markets have not liked Trump and the markets do not like instability.”

Miami-Dade’s luxury market saw its weakest month since 2011 in October, according to EWM Realty International data. While the election has likely impacted luxury sales, they’ve been on steady decline for months, EWM President Ron Shuffield told TRD. October saw 102 luxury properties (defined as $1 million and up) sell in Miami-Dade, the lowest October since 2011 when 65 luxury homes and condos sold.

The slowdown, especially in the luxury market, “probably will continue to happen regardless of the election,” Shuffield said.

Foreign investors, who have already been on the decline due to weakened foreign currencies, could also be deterred by Trump’s anti-trade, anti-immigration policies, a group of panelists said during a legal summit on Monday.

“A victory by Trump would mean more restrictions and more scrutiny of money coming in,” Akerman partner Luis A. Perez said. “If he prevails, Latin Americans would see it as the U.S. rejecting investments and immigration originating from Latin America. That would have a profound impact in Miami.”

EWM’s Nelson Gonzalez has some clients waiting to make offers until the election is over. Gonzalez said that for the last several months, potential buyers have been in a holding pattern, echoing the impact of political uncertainty.

Two to three of his clients are waiting to submit offers for Miami Beach homes in the $5 million to $10 million range, Gonzalez told TRD. 

While market instability isn’t new for an election year, many top agents said it has contributed to a slowdown in deals, more so on the residential side.

Jay Parker, CEO of Douglas Elliman Florida, said the market is “definitely anxiously anticipating the selection of our next president” and a return to normalcy, but thinks that the Zika virus has had a much bigger impact on the residential sales slowdown in South Florida.

“The misconception of the impact of Zika has been far more damaging to us,” Parker, who expects told TRD. “People are not coming here. People are not closing on their [properties].”

Zika even made an appearance during Douglas Elliman’s third quarter earning call last week. “In New York, a smaller slowdown; in Florida, bigger,” chairman Howard Lorber said. “Florida had such a huge run up in a short period of time, but I think it’s also a combination of that and Zika.”

Regardless, come Wednesday Parker said “people will start to focus on the real world again.”

Commercial deals also have not been immune to the political uncertainty.

Colliers International South Florida broker Mika Mattingly has seen longer due diligence periods for commercial deals, but not a slowdown because of it. “Investors are jittery,” she told TRD, adding that the commercial market is due for a correction regardless. “People like to have timeframes as a reference.”

Alex Zylberglait, an investment broker at Marcus & Millichap, said the election has had no effect on commercial deals. Zylberglait focuses on office and industrial properties priced between $1 million and $20 million to domestic and South American investors. He said either candidate would have a hard time passing an extreme agenda and opposition could be strong.

“Whoever wins, they’re going to have a very difficult time governing.”

Aerial view of construction in Brickell as of January

1. Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse coming to Brickell [The Next Miami]
2. Two townhouse projects proposed in Broward County [SFBJ]
3. Election day finds Supreme Court divided over banking case [Daily Business Review]
4. Townhouse merger scrapped in favor of new Midtown house [Palm Beach Daily News]

— Sean Stewart-Muniz

Current reader favorites:

1. Brickell City Centre opens its doors: PHOTOS
2. South American buyer pays record $5.5M for “The Ark” in Golden Beach
3. AIMCO files plans for 61-story Brickell apartment tower
4. Developer submits plans for mixed-use project on US 1 in Coconut Grove
5. Jeff Greene lauds WPB rejection of skyscraper plan, continues push for his projects

The White House is worth $393 million, according to Zillow.

From the November issue: America’s exhaustive and exhausting two-year presidential cycle is drawing to a close, which means that the White House will soon have new — or, at least, newly returned — residents. Spread across 18 acres, the mansion is 55,000 square feet, with 132 rooms, including three kitchens and 35 bathrooms. Still, the White House is considered modest compared to the official residences of some other heads of state. The property was built for one purpose only — as a symbol of American political stability. It has never been bought of sold.

“In view of the frantic nature of many election campaigns, it is amazing that there has never been an interruption in the lawful exchange of residents at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,” writes the White House Historical Association on its website. Of course, that hasn’t stopped people from speculating on its market value. Zillow estimated the value of the property at $393 million. That, of course, includes a large premium for its historical significance. [more]

Donald Trump with his family and campaign staff on Tuesday (Credit: @realdonaldtrump)

From the New York website: Donald Trump, the developer who stamped his particular brand of bombast on New York’s real estate market, was elected the 45th president of the United States on Tuesday, pulling off the most stunning upset in modern American politics.

“Working together, we will begin the urgent task of rebuilding our nation and renewing the American dream,” Trump told supporters at a rally at the New York Hilton Midtown around 3 a.m. Wednesday, after his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton had called him to concede. “I’ve spent my entire life in business, looking at the untapped potential in projects and in people all over the world. That is now what I want to do for our country.”

Trump’s run at the White House, perhaps the most unconventional campaign ever waged by a candidate from a major party, was shaped in a big way by figures from New York’s real estate industry. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and CEO of Kushner Companies, gained influence during the course of the campaign, and by July, insiders had taken to describing him as the de-facto campaign manager. Trump also called upon moguls such as Vector Group CEO Howard Lorber and Vornado Realty Trust CEO Steven Roth, naming them to his economic brain trust.

When Trump announced his candidacy last June from the marble-filled atrium of Trump Tower, it was considered by many to be a lark and a tactic to boost his media presence. But from the get go, he received support from industry figures. Ralph Herzka, CEO of Meridian Capital Group and one of the city’s most prominent debt brokers, donated the maximum permitted amount to Trump within weeks of his presidential announcement. Others followed, and it quickly became clear that support for Trump would go much further up the chain of real estate power and influence. An early PAC called Make America Great Again raked in sizeable donations from billionaire developer John Catsimatidis, Midtown Equities’ Michael Cayre and the Kushner family, once New Jersey’s preeminent Democratic fundraising force.

Throughout the rest of 2015 and into this year, more of the industry’s prominent figures gave either their cash or their endorsement to Trump, the first of their clan to have a real shot at the most powerful piece of real estate in the world. Arthur Zeckendorf and Richard LeFrak stepped up for him, as did Elie Hirschfeld and Peter Kalikow.

But Trump’s style wasn’t for everyone. For many months it seemed like few in the industry wanted to say much about it.

Joseph Moinian, Steven Spinola, Larry Silverstein, Anthony Malkin and many others declined requests to discuss Trump back in March. Others who went on the record would often caveat critical comments by expressing admiration of Trump’s skills as a promoter. Even some who hopped aboard the Trump train, such as Vornado’s Roth, stayed mum.

“I have nothing to say about the campaign and I don’t spend any time on it,” Roth said in September.

Meanwhile, plenty of New York real estate’s most powerful families and chieftains were busy funding Trump’s rivals. Members of the Durst, Resnick and Rudin families donated to Clinton’s campaign (later a survey by Kushner’s own paper, the New York Observer, would show that much of the city’s property elite supported Clinton, too). Arthur Zeckendorf’s brother, William Lie Zeckendorf, also gave to Clinton. Longtime Republican fundraisers like Related Companies’ Stephen Ross weren’t giving to either of the two future nominees and were publicly expressing doubts, but not condemnations, of a Trump presidency.

“I respect him, but I don’t really see him as president of the United States,” Ross said on CBS last October. “I think the ability to put a leadership cabinet, and organizations…and I don’t think he’s really dealt with that in his life.” Others, such as Aby Rosen, were far less forgiving.  In August, the RFR Holding chief plastered a massive billboard urging New Yorkers to “Vote Your Conscience” at one of his development sites in Noho.

On election day, Hirschfeld told TRD that despite Trump’s decades in New York real estate, he “somehow never seemed to become an insider.”

“I’m not sure if the industry knows how to relate to him,” Hirschfeld added.

As Clinton leaped far ahead in wrangling campaign dollars from prominent donors, Trump reached out to a somewhat more obscure collection of hedge funders (Anthony Scaramucci, Robert Mercer) and elsewhere investors (Bradley Hughes, Andy Beal). In California this spring, Colony Capital CEO Tom Barrack helped form a super PAC to raise tens of millions of dollars for Trump. Critics constantly questioned whether Trump would raise enough money to compete with Clinton, and Barrack, as vocal in his support as ever, even took a step back from the PAC he had helped form. He never donated to it, and according to a recent analysis by Bloomberg, the PAC will only have spent 63 percent of what Barrack originally said it had raised. In July, Barrack himself questioned the role of super PACs in an interview he gave to TRD. “The purpose of funds primarily, especially from Super PACs, is for negative ads,” Barrack said. “Do you need more money to run more negative ads? I don’t think so.”

Trump made up for the financing gap by relying on his preternatural talent for staying in the spotlight, drawing huge crowds to his rallies and wielding his Twitter account like a 24-7 free attack ad.

As his vitriol got increasingly darker over the course of the campaign, many industry insiders previously thrilled by the prospect of one of their own becoming president relaxed their support. As Andrew Heiberger, the founder and CEO of Town Residential and an early Trump supporter, put it, Trump’s drift to the farthest fringes of political discourse became “an insurmountable blemish on his character.” And Edward Mermelstein, an attorney, developer, and acquaintance of Trump, rued that the candidate never made more of himself than the brassy caricature of a New York billionaire that allowed his rise to prominence in the first place.

“He’s still showing us more of the individual that we were seeing on television shows than the individual we expect him to be as president of the United States,” Mermelstein said.

The truth is that Trump had been cultivating a reputation for fringe political beliefs for years. From questioning the legitimacy of America’s first black president to contemplating the execution of the “Central Park Five,” Trump’s taste for the most indecorous of conspiratorial American politics became as foundational to his brand as Trump Tower.

Now, when he takes the oath of office on Jan. 20, Trump will enjoy an unencumbered ability to govern, given that the Republicans maintained control of both the House and Senate. What he does with the most powerful position in the world remains to be seen, but what appears clear is that a Trump presidency will be unlike anything America has seen before.

“So, it’s been what they call a historic event,” Trump said at the rally Wednesday. “But to be really historic, we have to do a great job. And I promise you that I will not let you down. We will do a great job. We will do a great job.”

Rendering of the furniture showroom at 105 North Federal Highway

The gloves have come off in a Fort Lauderdale dispute between a high-end furniture showroom’s developer and its former general contractor.

Happy Land Fl., a company controlled by Sergey Slastikhin, just hit Cambridge Construction with a lawsuit alleging the builder committed fraud, among other counts, by refusing to pay subcontractors and causing liens to build up against the developer.

The suit, recently filed in Broward County Circuit Court, centers around the $4.75 million construction contract Cambridge won in early 2014 to build a roughly 36,000-square-foot retail store at 105 North Federal Highway.

According to the complaint, Cambridge caused a heap of problems that resulted in delays and liens against the developer over the course of the project’s construction. For one, the builder allegedly failed to pull permits for subcontracting work like plumbing and HVAC systems before starting work. The city even stepped in to shut down the site in February 2016 after Cambridge started working off of revised plans before submitting them, the suit says.

To make matters worse, according to the complaint, the subcontractors themselves weren’t getting paid, even though Happy Land was paying its construction bills to Cambridge.

At least nine liens piled up against the developer for more than $550,000, according to the suit. Happy Land eventually had to shell out $230,000 to clear out the subcontractors’ claims.

The dispute came to a boiling point in July of this year, when the developer fired Cambridge and brought on Coastal Construction to finish the job.

Construction progress as of January this year

City documents show the building was originally meant to house a single tenant, which would use the space as a furniture showroom to supplement its online orders for high-end condo clients throughout South Florida. A representative for the project said Elite Homes, a luxury retailer that does business in Miami and New York, was originally slated to be 105 North Federal Highway’s tenant, but that’s since fallen through and the building is without a tenant. The project’s manager declined to provide additional comment.

It’s unclear whether the situation with Cambridge led to Elite Homes backing out.

The project is expected to be finished early next year and is seeking a tenant for its three floors, each of which boast about 12,000 square feet of leasable space.

Happy Land is now seeking a trial by jury against Cambridge for counts of fraud, breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and a “per se” violation of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

A request for comment to Torry Watson, Cambridge’s CEO and a defendant in the suit, was not immediately returned. The contractor has worked on several of Ocean Land Investments’ boutique condo developments in South Florida, namely the Aquavita and Aqualuna.

Renderings of the Four Seasons. Inset: Sales director Dan Teixeira

New York-based Douglas Elliman has been tapped to handle sales for the Four Seasons Hotel & Private Residences in Fort Lauderdale, a project now seeking registration to sell in New York, sales director Dan Teixeira told The Real Deal. 

Miami-based Fort Partners, led by Nadim Ashi, is developing the 130-room hotel and 90-unit project. Fort Partners launched the project with an in-house sales team about a year ago, but brought on Douglas Elliman officially at the 2016 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show last weekend.

Teixeira said the developer has been focused on the Surf Club Four Seasons, which is currently under construction in Surfside.

The 22-story Fort Lauderdale development, slated to rise at 525 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, has about a dozen reservations from buyers in the Northeast, South Florida and other countries including Israel. South Florida projects that have already secured registration in New York include 1 Hotel & Homes and Turnberry Ocean Club.

Teixeira, who handled sales for the Ritz-Carlton Fort Lauderdale in 2008, isn’t worried about the overall slowdown in sales, and told TRD that buyers have been waiting for a project like the Four Seasons. Fort Lauderdale Beach projects include Paramount Fort Lauderdale and the Gale Hotel & Residences, where sales have also slowed.

“Fort Lauderdale has a very high hurdle to overcome when developments are approved, which is a big advantage because we are the only new branded development going up in the Las Olas beach area,” he said.

Residences will range in price from nearly to $1 million to $15 million, and in size from about 1,000 square feet to 7,000 square feet. Three of the 90 units will be larger, two-story condos with 20-foot ceilings. Some units will include the option of being managed by the Four Seasons. The residential component is valued at $350 million, Teixeira said.

The sales gallery overlooks the construction site, which crews cleared last year. The sales center was built out in a penthouse on the 25th floor of the Fort Lauderdale Beach Hilton Resort, according to Teixeira. Construction is slated to begin mid-2017 and the project will be delivered within two years.

Designed by architect Kobi Karp and interior designer Tara Bernard, the Four Seasons will have a resort-style pool, fitness center, beach butlers and other services, and a third floor dedicated to residents and their guests.

Fort Partners bought the entire 1.8-acre block from Dev Motwani’s Merrimac Ventures in 2015.

In one of Miami’s biggest concrete pours this year, more than 700 construction workers spent 30 hours laying the foundation for Paramount Miami Worldcenter, marking a major milestone for the 60-story luxury condo tower.

The massive undertaking began in the wee hours of Saturday, Oct. 22, as 100 concrete trucks lined the corner of Northeast Eighth Street and Northeast First Avenue to deliver their loads. By Sunday afternoon on Oct. 23, 13,000 cubic yards of concrete weighing some 52 million pounds had been poured over the tower’s metal framework.

With its foundation complete, vertical construction can begin on the 700-foot tower, bringing it closer to the developer’s expected 2018 completion date. The 513-unit tower is being built by Dan Kodsi, Nitin Motwani and Art Falcone as part of the larger Miami Worldcenter mixed-use development that underwent a massive redesign earlier in the year.

So far, 50 percent of the condo tower’s units have entered contract with prices averaging $700 per square foot, according to the developer.

Paramount will sit directly next to Worldcenter’s 450,000 square feet of high street retail space, and the project as a whole will also feature a 429-unit apartment project from Orlando developer ZOM. The MDM Development Group recently scored approvals for its redesign of the project’s companion development, the Marriott Marquis Miami Worldcenter Hotel & Expo, which now is slated to bring 1,700 hotel rooms to the area. — Sean Stewart-Muniz

The Square in Frankfurt (Credit: OfficeFirst) and Blackstone’s Jonathan Gray

From the New York website: In Europe’s largest property deal this year, private equity giant Blackstone Group has agreed to pay $3.6 billion for OfficeFirst, the real estate subsidiary of Germany’s IVG Immobilien AG.

Last month, IVG — which is one of Germany’s largest property companies — gave up on an initial public offering of OfficeFirst because of investor concerns about market volatility. The company then turned down a private sale offer from Blackstone [TRDataCustom], which raised the ire of the roughly 30 hedge funds that own it, the Wall Street Journal reported.

But on Tuesday, the two companies reached an agreement. The terms are similar to Blackstone’s offer last month, according to the Journal. Blackstone will pay around 22 euros (roughly $24 USD) per share, Reuters reported.

OfficeFirst has 97 properties worth around 1.3 billion euros, the Journal reported. The deal will add 15 million square feet of mainly office space across six major cities, including Berlin and Frankfurt, to Blackstone’s global portfolio.

In an earnings presentation last month, Blackstone told analysts that its dry powder crossed the $100 billion threshold for the first time. Due to inflated asset prices and interest rates at record lows, Blackstone had difficulty finding highly attractive investments that could yield double-digit returns for its customers.

The company sold $7.2 billion worth of real estate last quarter, thanks largely to the $6.5 billion sale of Strategic Hotels & Resorts to Anbnag Insurance. [WSJ] — Miriam Hall

44 Star Island Drive

Miami Beach investor Shay Kostiner put his Star Island property, redevelopment plans included, for sale at $24 million.

Kostiner will move forward with his plans for the Ricardo Bofill-designed modern mansion regardless of whether a buyer comes along, listing agent Marcos Egipciaco of Sovereign Real Estate Group told The Real Deal. Egipciaco said listing the property gives his client more options.

Kostiner, managing director of Fifth Ave Capital Partners, acquired the 1.1-acre property at 44 Star Island for $7.25 million in 2010 and went before a number of Miami Beach boards to score demolition approval and approval for a new home on the lot.

The approved plans are for a 27,000-square-foot home with nine bedrooms, an eight-car garage, rooftop and bayfront pools, a private dock with a new sea wall and 209 feet of water frontage, and luxury finishes, according to Egipciaco.

Bofill, an award-winning Spanish architect who heads Barcelona-based Taller de Arquitectura, is working on 3900 Alton in Miami Beach, his first condo project in the United States.

In April, Kostiner secured design review approval for 44 Star Island, which allowed for variances that raise the home’s elevation to a height of 13 feet above sea level. Kostiner’s architects said they would raise the elevation of the home by gradually sloping the property up to its desired height and by building berms along the side of the home. They also agreed to submit a “tree protection plan” to save three large Ficus trees on the property, something they aimed to do in the past.

The existing house, built in 1935, will be demolished.

Check out more renderings:

Two Brickell City Centre

Swire Properties has wooed away McKinsey & Co. from the company’s long-time offices at the Miami Tower, signing the global consulting firm for a full floor at the developer’s newly opened Two Brickell City Centre, sources told The Real Deal.

McKinsey has agreed to lease 17,000 square feet at the 12-story office building, marking a big boost in space from the firm’s current 7,110-square-foot digs on Miami Tower’s 21st floor.

Terms of the lease are unknown, but data from the CoStar Group shows asking rents for the building’s sister tower, Three Brickell City Centre, average $53 per square foot.

McKinsey is one of the world’s largest research and consulting firms, raking in an annual revenue of $8.4 billion in 2014, according to Forbes. Outside of more than doubling its footprint in Miami, the company appears to be on a growth path — its revenues were $7 billion in 2011, according to Forbes, marking a $1.4 billion boost in just three years.

The lease brings the 132,280-square-foot Two Brickell City Centre to 60 percent occupancy, coming two months after co-working giant WeWork agreed to occupy a whopping 65,000 square feet at the Class A building.

Swire Properties President Stephen Owens told TRD during a meeting last month that Two Brickell City Centre had received its temporary certificate of occupancy, signaling the office building was ready to open. Brickell City Centre’s retail portion also opened last week, bringing the project’s first phase to completion.

CoStar data shows McKinsey is set to leave its current space by February 2017.

Miami’s office market has tightened in the past year, as evidenced by a dwindling vacancy rate and quickly growing average rents. As Donna Abood, principal of Avison Young’s Miami branch recently said, condo developers have drained the city’s urban core of lots ripe for office projects, starving the market of new supply.