MIAMI—Money is pouring into Miami condo developer coffers these days. The latest to win the confidence of lenders is Melo Group. The residential real estate developer just announced a $67.11 million loan from TotalBank.
Melody will use the money to help fund the construction of Melody, a 36-story luxury apartment building rising from the dirt at 245 Northeast 14th Street in Downtown Miami's Arts & Entertainment District. That's right next to the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. Construction of the 497-unit project began in September 2014, and is expected to be completed in early 2016.
“When you have a workforce as big as Downtown Miami does, you need to be able to provide quality rentals for many of those professionals,” says Carlos Melo, a principal at Melo. “World-class downtowns, from New York to Buenos Aires, are able to offer a mix of condos and apartments to meet the needs of their day-time and night-time population. A downtown that only offers condos—many of which are unaffordable to area's professionals—will lag behind major cities. We want to contribute to the evolution of our city. ”
Melo has good timing with its multifamily project. The demand for quality rentals in Downtown Miami is rising rapidly. Melody hopes to turn the heads of professionals who work in the area.
With all the amenities and a strategic location, Melody looks like a strong addition to the mix. The residential tower is rising near a Metromover station and was designed to encourage pedestrian traffic. The multifamily project will offer a ground floor restaurant space with outdoor seating opening into a plaza.
Melo is the latest to win a big loan. In September, Fortune International Group closed a construction loan up to $284 million for Jade Signature. HSBC provided the loan, but was not immediately available for comment. Less than a week before that,
Cohen Financial inked a mega construction loan for Muse in Sunny Isles, FL. The real estate capital services firm secured a $167.6 million loan for the high-end condo.
GlobeSt.com asked Robert Vahradian, senior managing director of GTIS Partners, for his thoughts on the trend. He told us, “In my mind, to get financed, a development should have a strong location, a market-driven and exciting project concept and programming, experienced and well capitalized sponsorship and a high level of pre-sales with 40% to 50% deposits so as to de-risk the lender's market exposure.”
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