MIAMI—With the recent interest rate hike signaling the end of an era for cheap loans, real estate developers and investors are racing to the finish line to secure favorable financing. In Miami, we have seen billions in financing across all asset classes in this year alone.

Case in point: We saw the largest condo construction loan in Miami history close, when Paramount Miami Worldcenter secured $285 million in new financing. The loan surpassed the previous record: a $225 million loan for the Zaha Hadid-designed One Thousand Museum project, which closed in December of 2016. (A Miami Beach hotel recently won a refi nod from the CMBS market and a South Beach refi in February speaks volumes.)

Lenders are narrowing their loan criteria by putting greater emphasis on well-capitalized sponsors building projects in premium locations. This marks a clear shift in a Miami real estate market that has experienced a surge of free-flowing capital in recent years.