Commercial foreclosures increase in Miami-Dade and Broward counties

Miami-Dade and Broward counties showed a surge in commercial real estate foreclosure activity in March and April, with a total of 39 foreclosure filings of $250,000 or more, according to data from Off-Market Radar. There were 24 filings alone in March, seven of which were worth $2 million or more. “While the number of foreclosures has not drastically increased in Miami-Dade and Broward County, the number and percentage of larger deals is accelerating,” said Brian McCarthy, vice president of Off-Market Radar. — Christopher Cameron

Canadians are cashing in on the Miami condo market

Indians, Scandinavians and now Canadians are benefitting from the recovering Miami condo market, the Canadian Real Estate Magazine reported. As The Real Deal previously reported, Canadians were the largest foreign buyer percentage-wise in Florida in 2011, and they are often paying cash – 65 percent of sales in Miami last quarter were all cash, double the national figure of 32 percent. Now, many of those investments are paying off, with statistics from the National Association of Realtors showing forward momentum in the Miami market. The median condo sales prices was up 46 percent in March, year-over-year. “The fact that Miami home prices have significantly increased for four consecutive months indicates prices have bottomed and have caught up with sales levels,” said Martha Pomares, chairwoman of the board of Miami Association of Realtors. [Canadian Real Estate Magazine]

Former Versace home lists for $125M

The late designer Gianni Versace’s former Miami Beach home Casa Casuarina is on the market asking $125 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. The 10-bedroom, 11-bathroom, 19,000-square-foot estate was purchased by Versace in 1992 for close to $10 million. The designer had made $33 million in renovations to the property, adding a 6,100-square-foot south wing, a 54-foot-long mosaic-tiled pool lined with 24-karat gold and a courtyard before he was murdered outside the house in 1997. The mansion, which is located at 1116 Ocean Drive in South Beach, has since been converted to a hotel and restaurant by Peter Loftin, a telecom entrepreneur. It is now called the Villa by Barton G. Loftin purchased the house in 2000 for $20 million. Jill Eber and Jill Hertzberg of Coldwell Banker are marketing the property. [WSJ]

Setai condo sells for $7.2 million, almost $3,000 per square foot

A 2,521-square-foot condominium at the Setai South Beach has sold for $7.2 million, according to Esslinger Wooten Maxwell. The sale worked out to an average price of $2,856 per square foot, one of the highest average prices yet for a Setai unit. Last year, the Setai saw one of the largest condo sales in Miami of all time, when a penthouse unit sold for $21.5 million. “Sales in the Setai have been outstanding — a reflection of what’s happening across South Florida in terms of high-end residential real estate transactions,” said EWM’s Lourdes Gutierrez, who represented the buyer in the deal. EWM is the exclusive affiliate of Christie’s International Real Estate in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. — Alexander Britell

Miami metro home prices rise 11 percent

Home prices in the Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall metropolitan area rose 11.1 percent in April compared to the same period in 2011, according to a new report from CoreLogic. Excluding distressed sales, year-over-year prices in the area jumped 7.1 percent in April compared to the same month last year. Statewide, Florida had the third-highest appreciation of any state in April, with a 5.5 percent increase in home prices. Nationally, prices were up 1.1 percent in April. “We see consistent month-over-month increases within our HPI and Pending HPI as one sign that the housing market is stabilizing,” said CoreLogic President Anand Nallathambi. “Home prices are responding to a restricted supply that will likely exist for some time to come — and optimistic sign for the future of our industry.” — Alexander Britell

Star Creek Apartments multi-family property sells in North Miami Beach

The 314-unit Star Creek Apartments in North Miami Beach has been sold for an undisclosed amount, according to Continental Real Estate Companies, which brokered the deal on behalf of the property’s Miami-based owner. Star Creek, which is located at 361 Northeast 191st Street in North Miami Beach, is the fifth multi-family sale handled by CREC in the first five months of 2012. The complex, which was 94 percent occupied at the time of sale, had previously been acquired for $11 million around 10 years ago. “The sale of Star Creek Apartments demonstrates continued investor demand for apartment communities in Florida, particularly among local owners and operators who understand the underlying value of older assets that many not attract interest from institutional buyers,” said Peter Mekras, who handled the deal for CREC. — Alexander Britell