Real estate professionals at The Real Deal’s Miami Real Estate Forum disputed claims that Miami is facing a real estate bubble similar to the one that burst in 2008. Ana Bozovic, founder of Analytics Miami, emphasized the role of cash transactions in the current market.
“This market is built on cash,” Bozovic said during a panel discussion moderated by Stuart Elliott, Editor-in-Chief of The Real Deal. She criticized a UBS report labeling Miami as highly vulnerable to a bubble, calling it an “egregious misrepresentation of truth” due to the prevalence of cash buyers.
Bozovic explained, “Usually when assets collapse, it’s because there’s a collapse. The bubble pops when the underlying assets can no longer sustain the debt, and it all goes away, kind of like a flammable house of cards. We don’t have this setup.”
Dan Kodsi, CEO of Royal Palm Companies, argued that Miami does not face an oversupply issue like in 2008 but acknowledged high construction costs are driving up prices. “The issue is we’re building product that’s expensive, and because of construction costs, when you’re building high-rise especially, you have to sell it at a very high price per foot,” he said.
Kodsi noted that rising prices are causing local residents to seek more affordable housing options elsewhere in Florida. “Every part of Florida, you’re seeing grow,” he added.
Panelists also discussed potential migration from New York to South Florida following Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral victory in New York City. Brad Meltzer, president of Two Roads Development, commented on expectations for an immediate influx: “I think the expectation that you’re going to see something immediately, like, the press keeps kind of glorifying like, ‘oh, tomorrow, there’s gonna be a million people moving here.’ That’s not going to happen, but it’s going to happen after a matter of time. Some people have families. They have kids. You don’t just pick up and move tomorrow, but the investigation process is going to start to happen.”
Both Kodsi and Meltzer addressed ongoing legal challenges affecting their respective projects. For Two Roads Development’s Edition Residences project at Biscayne 21 in Edgewater—where holdout condo owners won their case against lowering termination requirements—Meltzer remained optimistic: “It’ll take a little bit more time,” he said. “There’s been discussions behind the scenes with that, but it’ll get resolved. It has to resolve itself. When something is valuable enough, parties have to compromise like anything else in life, and there’ll be a compromise that takes place, and everybody will feel that they can get a good deal, and we’ll move on.”
Kodsi faces foreclosure litigation over Legacy Hotel & Residences at Miami Worldcenter and reported working toward $390 million refinancing for the project despite being barred from discussing details by court order. He expressed confidence about its future: “That ugly dumpling, let’s say, is going to be a beautiful swan when she’s built, a great project,” Kodsi said.
