Crescent Heights has secured a $238.4 million refinancing for its 588-unit luxury apartment tower, Forma Miami, located in Edgewater. The transaction is part of a broader trend of continued lending activity in South Florida’s real estate market, despite higher interest rates.
The 40-story Forma Miami tower at 2900 Biscayne Boulevard was completed last year by Crescent Heights, a firm led by Russell Galbut, Sonny Kahn, and Bruce Menin. The building features 85,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities and includes a 50,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market.
The refinancing was arranged through Freddie Mac’s Lease-up program, which targets multifamily properties nearing stabilization but not yet fully stabilized. Aaron Appel and Jonathan Schwartz from Walker & Dunlop represented Crescent Heights in the deal. Michael Stepniewski of Walker & Dunlop explained that while Forma is now stabilized, it had not reached that status when the refinancing application was first submitted.
Russell Galbut stated, “The tower is 97 percent leased.”
Forma Miami offers studios and one- to three-bedroom units with high-end finishes designed by Rockwell Group and Arquitectonica. According to Apartments.com, monthly rents range from $3,080 to $7,515.
Crescent Heights also owns nine acres adjacent to Forma Miami and plans to develop the area into a city center.
Other recent refinancings in the region include Treo Group’s $132 million for its Vox I and II student housing campus in South Miami and Midtown Capital’s $57 million bridge loan for its Astor Sound apartment complex in Lake Worth Beach. In August, Acre secured $72 million to refinance its Adela at MiMo Bay project in Miami’s MiMo Biscayne Boulevard Historic District.
South Florida’s multifamily sector has seen an oversupply following a surge in construction prompted by high demand during the pandemic. In 2023 alone, developers completed a record 18,600 apartments in South Florida while only 15,000 net new leases were signed according to CoStar Group data. This imbalance has resulted in lower rents and increased concessions for tenants.
Despite this supply overhang, developers continue to launch new projects with expectations that demand will rebound as these buildings are finished over the next few years.
Oak Row Equities is currently developing a 324-unit project called 2900 Terrace at Northeast 29th Street and Northeast Fourth Avenue in Edgewater. In June, Miami Design District Associates—which includes Dacra led by Craig Robins, Hunter Pasteur, and The Forbes Company—obtained a $125 million construction loan for the Cassi apartment project at 91-93 Northeast 36th Street in the Miami Design District.
