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HB 881 expands the My Safe Florida Home program to most areas and increases minimum home values. SB 7052 boosts consumer protections and insurer accountability. HB 799 changes Citizens’ price increase “glide path” mainly for non-homesteaded properties.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis signed three bills on Wednesday that impact property insurance in Florida. Together, they push property insurance discounts for homeowners who strengthen their home to minimize storm damage, help some Floridians pay for upgrades based on the recommendations of a free inspection, limit policy cancellations and make a number of other changes.
House Bill 881 expands the eligibility requirements of Florida’s home hardening grant program, known as My Safe Florida Home. It now covers homes with an insured value up to $700,000 – an increase from $500,000 – and it includes townhomes.
While the My Safe Florida Home existed before the governor signed HB 881, the program now offers grants – $2 for every $1 spent up to $10,000 – to almost every Floridian, even if they’re outside a windborne debris region.
The Florida Legislature also appropriated another $100 million to extend the program. It’s effective July 1, 2023.
HB 799 includes a number of provisions, such as requiring property insurers to allow for mitigation discounts if a homeowner reduced their potential for losses in a windstorm.
However, the major change affects policies on second and vacation homes insured by Citizens Property Insurance, Florida’s state-owned “insurer of last resort.” HB 799 treats Florida residents – owners with a homestead exemption on their property – differently than investment properties.
While homesteaded owners will still have a “glide path” to higher payments as Citizens raises rates, vacation and second-home owners will not. Investment homeowners, both new and existing, will likely see a higher bill sometime over the next year as policies renew or non-homesteaded owners with another insurer switch their coverage to Citizens.
Homesteaded owners who switch to Citizens because their current insurer became insolvent are similarly impacted. Effective July 1, 2023.
Senate Bill 7052 contains a number of consumer-protection provisions, such as new restrictions on insurers canceling a policy with an open claim, increased fines against insurers, limits on insurer executive compensation under certain circumstances, and guardrails for insurers who amend insurance adjuster reports. It’s also effective July 1, 2023.
© 2023 Florida Realtors®
During Florida’s 2023 legislative session, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 264 – Interests of Foreign Countries. This bill was recently signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis and will take effect on July 1, 2023. The law, in part, limits and regulates the sale, purchase and ownership of certain properties in Florida by specific foreign principals, persons and entities.
There are three sections of the new law that impact the state’s real estate industry. To help stakeholders better understand this impact, Florida Realtors has developed a memorandum that outlines the new law. Please note that the Florida Real Estate Commission, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity are required to implement specific portions of the bill, so a number of details regarding the law’s application are still pending.
MEMORANDUM – click here to read it as downloadable pdf
SB 264 – Interests of Foreign Countries
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 264, Interests of Foreign Countries, effective July 1, 2023. The law, in part, limits and regulates the sale, purchase and ownership of certain properties in Florida by foreign principals, persons and entities described in Part III of Chapter 692, Florida Statutes.
The three sections of the bill that impact the real estate industry are summarized below. The Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC), Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS), and the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) are required to implement specific portions of the bill, so a number of details regarding the law’s application are still pending. Florida Realtors® will engage in the implementation process.
This summary is a broad overview of a new and very technical law. Realtors® should advise the parties to real estate transactions to consult an attorney regarding how the law may impact their legal rights and responsibilities. Definitions of bolded and italicized words are provided on the second page. This prohibition does not apply to a purchase for a diplomatic purpose.
Section 5: Purchase of Agricultural Land by Foreign Principals
The bill prohibits the purchase of agricultural land by foreign principals.
-At time of purchase, buyers of agricultural land must provide a signed affidavit attesting that they are not a foreign principal.
-Persons who acquire or knowingly sell agricultural land in violation of this section commit a misdemeanor.
-FREC is required to adopt rules to implement portions of the statute and develop the affidavit. -Foreign principals may continue to own agricultural land if owned before July 1, 2023, but must register with DACS. There are penalties for not registering by January 1, 2024.
-Foreign principals may acquire agricultural land on or after July 1, 2023 by devise or descent, through the enforcement of security interests, or through the collection of debts, but must sell within 3 years after acquisition.
-Land acquired in violation of this statute may be forfeited to the state.
Section 6: Purchase of Real Property On or Around Military Installations and Critical Infrastructure
The bill prohibits the purchase of real property within 10 miles of any military installation or critical infrastructure facility in Florida by foreign principals.
-At time of purchase, buyers of property within 10 miles of a military installation or critical infrastructure facility must provide a signed affidavit attesting that they are not a foreign principal.
-Persons who acquire or knowingly sell real property in violation of this section commit a misdemeanor.
-FREC is required to adopt rules to implement portions of the statute and develop the affidavit. -Foreign principals may continue to own real property within 10 miles of any military installation or critical infrastructure if owned before July 1, 2023, but must register with DEO by December 31, 2023.
-There is an exception for foreign principals, who are natural persons, to purchase one residential property up to 2 acres in size if:
-Foreign principals may acquire real property within 10 miles of any military installation or critical infrastructure facility in the state on or after July 1, 2023 by devise or decent, through the enforcement of security interests, or through the collection of debts, but must sell within 3 years of acquisition.
-Land acquired in violation of this statute may be forfeited to the state.
Section 7: Purchase and Acquisition of Real Property by the People’s Republic of China (PRC)
The bill prohibits certain PRC persons or entities from owning or acquiring real property in the state.
-At time of purchase, buyers of real property must provide a signed affidavit attesting they are not “persons or entities associated with the PRC”.
-FREC is required to adopt rules to implement portions of the statute and develop the affidavit. -Persons who knowingly sell real property in violation of this section commit a misdemeanor. Any other violation of this section is a felony.
-There is an exception for natural persons associated with the PRC to purchase one residential property up to 2 acres in size if:
-Persons or entities associated with the PRC that own property in Florida before July 1, 2023 may continue to own such property but cannot purchase or inherit additional property and must register with DEO by December 31, 2023.
-Persons or entities associated with the PRC may acquire property in Florida on or after July 1, 2023 by devise or descent, through the enforcement of security interests, or through the collection of debts, but must sell within 3 years of acquisition.
-Property owned or acquired in violation of the new statute may be forfeited to the state.
Definitions:
Agricultural land means land classified as agricultural in s.193.461, F.S. (bona fide agricultural purposes).
Critical infrastructure facility means any of the following, if it employs measures such as fences, barriers, or guard posts that are designed to exclude unauthorized persons:
A chemical manufacturing facility; a refinery; an electrical power plant as defined in s. 403.031(20); water treatment facility or wastewater treatment plant; a liquid natural gas terminal; a telecommunications central switching office; a gas processing plant, including a plant used in the processing, treatment, or fractionation of natural gas; a seaport as listed in s. 311.09; a spaceport territory as defined in s. 331.303(18); and an airport as defined in s. 333.01.
Foreign countries of concern means the People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Republic of Cuba, the Venezuelan regime of Nicolás Maduro, or the Syrian Arab Republic, including any agency of or any other entity of significant control of such foreign country of concern.
Foreign entity means an entity that is owned or controlled by the government of a foreign country of concern; or a partnership, association, corporation, organization, or other combination of persons organized under the laws of or having its principal place of business in a foreign country of concern, or a subsidiary of such entity.
Foreign principal means:
The government or any official of the government of a foreign country of concern;
A political party or member of a political party or any subdivision of a political party in a foreign country of concern;
A partnership, association, corporation, organization, or other combination of persons organized under the laws of, or having its principal place of business in, a foreign country of concern, or a subsidiary of such entity;
Any person who is domiciled in a foreign country of concern and is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States; or
Any person, entity, or collection of persons or entities, described above having a controlling interest in a partnership, association, corporation, organization, trust, or any other legal entity or subsidiary formed for the purpose of owning real property in this state.
Military installation means a base, camp, post, station, yard, or center encompassing at least 10 contiguous acres that is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense or its affiliates.
“Persons or entities associated with the PRC” means the following entities may not directly or indirectly own, have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent any interest, except a de minimus indirect interest, in real property in this state:
The People’s Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, or any official or member of the People’s Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party;
Any other political party or member of a political party or a subdivision of a political party in the People’s Republic of China;
A partnership, an association, a corporation, an organization, or any other combination of persons organized under the laws of or having its principal place of business in the People’s Republic of China, or a subsidiary of such entity;
Any person who is domiciled in the People’s Republic of China and who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States; or
Any person, entity, or collection of persons or entities described above having a controlling interest in a partnership, association, corporation, organization, trust, or any other legal entity or subsidiary formed for the purpose of owning real property in this state.
Real property means land, buildings, fixtures, and all other improvements to land.
Number of buyers looking within their metro dropped 15.6% in 1Q, but the number looking elsewhere fell only 4.2%. Fla. has 5 of top 10 want-to-move-to metros.
SEATTLE – The pandemic-era trend of buyers relocating greater distances didn’t end with the pandemic. While Redfin says searches on its website were down overall in the first quarter (1Q) of 2023, the number searching for a home outside their current metro was down only 4.2% compared to a drop of 15.6% of buyers seeking something else near their current location.
During the pandemic, both of those numbers shot up – but the out-of-state mover numbers shot up more.
The reasons for long-distance relocations have changed a bit, though. Many out-of-state moves took place during the pandemic because workers were no longer tied to an office and commute. More recently, a drive for affordable housing has become more important. Relatively affordable places are some of the nation’s most popular destinations.
And of the top 10 move-to cities cited by Redfin for 1Q, five are in Florida.
Looking at the trend another way, house hunters moving to a new area make up a bigger piece of the homebuying pie than ever. A record one-quarter (25.1%) of Redfin.com home searchers looked to relocate to a new metro in the first quarter. That’s up from 22.8% a year earlier and around 18% before the pandemic.
Popularity is determined by net inflow – how many more users looked to move into an area than leave.
Things have changed a bit for the top outbound cities, however. While the nation’s largest cities generally saw a population decline during the pandemic, a few are now seeing a better balance between incoming and outgoing residents. Immigration into major U.S. coastal cities like New York and Los Angeles, for example, has rebounded after dropping off drastically in 2020 and 2021.
In many cases, an uptick in international buyers has made up for some of the residents moving to less expensive destinations. The net inflow of immigrants more than doubled from 2021 to 2022 in the Bay Area, New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Boston.
“Several years of declining immigration, compounded by Americans flowing out of big coastal cities during the pandemic, resulted in many major coastal cities losing population,” says Redfin Deputy Chief Economist Taylor Marr. “Last year’s immigration rebound was a boon for those cities, which take in most of the people who move to the U.S. from other countries. For the housing and rental markets, the recovery should add enough demand to at least partly make up for the existing residents who move further inland.”
Overall, Miami, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Tampa and Orlando were the most popular move-to destinations. Sun Belt locales are typically the most popular because they’re relatively affordable. The typical home in eight of the 10 most popular destinations is less expensive than in its top origin.
People are also moving to the Sun Belt from other countries, and immigration into seven of the 10 most popular migration destinations – Phoenix, Tampa, Orlando, Cape Coral, North Port-Sarasota, Dallas and Houston – more than doubled from 2021 to 2022. However, they still didn’t achieve the total numbers of immigrants as the nation’s big coastal metros.
© 2023 Florida Realtors®
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – State insurance regulators last week signed off on a plan that will lead to policyholders throughout Florida paying extra on their bills because of property-insurer insolvencies.
Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky issued an order that approved a request by the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association to collect a 1 percent emergency “assessment” to cover costs of claims.
Insurers will collect the assessments from policyholders starting in October and send the money to the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association, according to the order.
The Florida Insurance Guaranty Association, or FIGA, is a non-profit agency created by the state to handle claims when insurers become insolvent. It has issued a series of assessments in recent years amid financial problems in the property-insurance industry. Seven property insurers have been deemed insolvent since early 2022.
FIGA’s board on March 31 approved seeking the emergency assessment after the insolvency of United Property & Casualty Insurance Co. That insolvency, which led to the appointment of a receiver for the company in February, is expected to lead to FIGA handling hundreds of millions of dollars in claims.
Under the plan approved last week by regulators, FIGA is borrowing $150 million in short-term financing to help pay claims. It then will issue up to $750 million in revenue bonds to pay off the short-term financing and to pay remaining claims. Money from the assessments will be used to pay off the bonds.
The FIGA website said the 1 percent assessment will continue until the “bonds have been paid in full.”
“The emergency assessment is necessary to secure funds for the payment of covered claims, to pay the reasonable costs to administer such claims, including claims resulting from insurance companies that have become insolvent or may become insolvent as a result of losses incurred due to hurricanes including but not limited to Hurricanes Irma, Michael and Ian, and to secure bonds issued to generate revenues to pay claims,” FIGA Executive Director Corey Neal wrote in an April 4 letter to Yaworsky.
Lisa Miller is the former Florida Deputy Insurance Commissioner and current CEO of Miller and Associates. She told News 6 that the funds generated from the fee are needed to pay claims for homeowners whose insurance companies have gone bankrupt. Miller added that the goal is to prevent any additional companies from shutting down.
“It signals that there are some large expenses coming up with large amounts of people that need their claims paid,” Miller said. “We can’t do anything about the weather. It’s sever storms, afternoon thunderstorms. The weather has really changed. We can’t change that.”
Miller said the Florida Insurance Guarantee Association will oversee the funds and assure that the money generated from the fees goes directly to pay for claims.
“Take a hard look at your insurance policy line-by-line and see if there is a way to adjust those costs,” Miller said. We as Floridians are going to be in this, probably going to get worse before it gets better. You’ve heard the governor say that, but their hope is over the next 18-20 months, we can bring these rates down.”
The assessment will come as property-insurance policyholders throughout the state face soaring premiums. Assessments will also be collected on a variety of types of other insurance policies, though they will not apply to auto insurance.
FIGA also collected a 0.7 percent assessment in 2022. It began collecting an additional 1.3 percent assessment on July 1, 2022, that is scheduled to end June 30, according to information on the agency’s website. In addition, policyholders are being hit this year with another 0.7 percent assessment that will end Dec. 31.
Private property insurers have dropped hundreds of thousands of policies and sought large increases during the past two years because of financial problems. Along with resulting in FIGA assessments, the problems in the industry have led to explosive growth at the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp.
Many state leaders have long warned that If Citizens does not have enough money to pay claims, it could have to collect assessments on policyholders throughout the state. Citizens, which had 1.248 million policies as of April 7, did not need to turn to assessments after last year’s Hurricane Ian and Hurricane Nicole.
Special assessments appear in various places of the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar contract, but Paragraph 3(c) on the Condo Rider has confused more than a few members.
ORLANDO, Fla. – The contracts and riders/addenda Florida Realtors offers members mention “special assessments” in various places. However, one tends to cause the most confusion: Paragraph 3(c) of the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar Condominium Rider (Condo Rider). This article focuses on that paragraph and how it operates.
Paragraph 3 of the Condo Rider is entitled “Fees, Assessments, Prorations and Litigation” and broken down into four subsections. The third section, subsection (c) covers “Special Assessments and Prorations.” A special assessment, in short, is a stand-alone charge above and beyond expected debt obligations, like a regular monthly payment.
Let’s take a look at 3(c) to hopefully make it easier to follow and, therefore, to complete and understand.
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What exactly is supposed to go here? This section is where sellers inform buyers about any special or other assessments of the association.
Any special or other assessments? No, just those levied by the association OR been an item on the agenda OR reported in the minutes of the association.
Wait, for how long? Within twelve (12) months prior to the effective date of the sales contract. Many of the time calculations in the sales contracts involve the effective date, and this is just another example of why the date is vital for understanding contract calculations.
It’s important to note that this section covers levied AND pending assessments. Levied, as used here, is in the past tense and means an assessment that the association has charged or imposed. Pending is defined as any special assessment that has been an item on the agenda OR reported in the minutes of the association in the previous twelve (12) months.
Practical tip: Before completing this section, sellers should verify their information directly with the association. While sellers may be aware of a levied assessment, they might not be up to date on a pending one, given that pending assessments are assessments on the agenda or reported in the minutes for the previous twelve (12) months. This is especially true for sellers who may not primarily occupy the property.
As you will see later, skipping this step – not personally verifying pending assessment with the association prior to completing this section – could come back to haunt the seller.
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This section deals with levied or pending assessments that can be paid in installments. Many associations don’t require owners to pay an entire assessment amount upfront, but instead state that owners can pay the assessment in installments. Sellers should definitely check with the association to verify this information.
Once a seller has confirms that a levied or pending assessment may be paid in installments, this subsection clarifies who will pay the individual installments. While the seller pays any due before closing, the parties can choose who will pay installments due after closing by checking one of two boxes. The section may be left blank, but if it is, the buyer pays installments due after closing by default.
Note: If the box for Seller is checked, the seller pays the assessment in full prior to or at closing. Even if an assessment has an installment option, that option ends if the seller agrees to pay off any amounts due after closing. At this point, the seller stops using installments and pays off the full amount of the remaining debt obligation.
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Remember when I mentioned that a failure on the part of the seller to verify levied or pending assessments could come back to bite them? Well, here are the teeth.
To clarify, the seller’s failure to disclose levied or pending assessments existing as of the effective date results in the seller paying those undisclosed assessments in full at the time of closing. Sellers who filled out this paragraph off the top of their head – without doublechecking with the association – could end up with an extra unexpected cost. It’s important to tell your sellers to verify this information before they complete this document.
Practical tip: When taking any listing of property subject to an association, a prepared agent will let sellers know what information they need to get from the association. Give a copy of the applicable rider/addenda to sellers so they can review the questions and know what to ask. And start this process at the beginning, i.e. when taking the listing, not once sellers start getting offers.
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This language emphasizes that any special assessment that is imposed after the effective date of the sales contract, which was not pending as of the effective date, will be broken down between the parties, with the seller paying all amounts due before closing and the buyer paying all amounts due after.
Note: This section says the imposed special assessment here was not pending, i.e. been on the agenda or reported in the minutes of the association in the previous twelve (12) months prior to the effective date. Again, knowing the effective date of the sales contract is important here! If the special assessment being imposed after the effective date was pending, then it should have been disclosed in subsection 3(c)(i).
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This section spells out that an assessment is deemed levied by an association on the date when the assessment has been approved, per Florida law and the condo documents buyer is entitled to receive under paragraph 5. This definition helps both the seller and buyer determine if/when an assessment has been levied.
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Prorations of many items are covered in the main body of the contract in paragraph 18(K), so this section of the Condo Rider makes it clear that the above items are not to be prorated.
As you can see, paragraph 3(c) covers a lot of information! Wise sellers will gather this information at the onset of the listing so they can accurately complete this (and other) sections of the Condo Rider. As noted, failure to verify the sellers’ personal knowledge on any applicable assessments could result in unhappy sellers who are faced with paying an assessment in full at closing. So while taking the time to confirm information with the association could be time consuming, it may save sellers a headache at closing.
Meredith Caruso is Associate General Counsel for Florida Realtors
Note: Information deemed accurate on date of publication
© 2023 Florida Realtors®
ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida remained the top destination of foreign buyers purchasing U.S. residential real estate in 2022, with 24% of all foreign buyers who bought residential property in the United States, according to the 2022 International Transactions in U.S. Residential Real Estate report from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).
Florida Realtors®’ latest report, the 2022 Profile of International Residential Transactions in Florida, finds that international sales accounted for $15.3 billion, up 20% from $12.3 billion in 2021.
Florida’s foreign buyer residential purchases (non-commercial) between August 2021 and July 2022 rose 5% compared to the prior 12-month period, according to the report. The combination of higher sales and rising prices also resulted in the higher dollar volume as well.
A slight rebound in sales activity in 2022 marked progress as the world continued to recover from the pandemic. Exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, supply chain issues continued to drag on the global economy despite a stronger domestic recovery.
Florida remains a bargain compared to many other options for international buyers looking to purchase in the United States, but competition for property remains strong and offers few discounts. However, higher sale prices, inflation and lack of inventory continue to constrain the purchase power of buyers of any origin: 49% of the survey respondents cited cost and 38% cited property availability as reasons for not finalizing a deal in 2022.
Visitors to Florida from abroad – often a precursor to their long-term purchase decision – have been rebounding since travel restrictions evaporated in November 2021. In 2022, 92% of foreign buyers visited Florida before purchasing, up from 89% the year before and back to the historical trend.
South America and Canada continued to lead the pack of international visitors in 2022. These same groups also translate into buyers, with 45% of Florida’s foreign buyers coming from Latin America/Caribbean areas and 21% coming from Canada.
Despite a slight decline in the number of Canadians buying residential property in Florida, the value of what they buy is increasing, and it pushed them to the top spot with $1.7 billion in sales in 2022. By comparison, Brazilian buyers, the second largest group, purchased $486 million.
South Florida remains the preferred location for international business. While foreign buyers purchased property across the state, most foreign buyers were concentrated in six metropolitan areas:
Additional highlights:
Florida’s Realtors’ interaction with international clients
The 2022 Profile of International Residential Transactions in Florida report presents information from Florida Realtors members regarding residential transactions with international clients closed during the 12-month period of August 2021 – July 2022. This annual report is conducted to assess international investment trends in Florida residential real estate, including sales volume, characteristics of foreign buyers, and challenges and opportunities inherent in cross-border transactions.
“Manatee County’s single-family home market has bucked the trend we’ve seen in recent months, showing the first year-over-year increase in sales since February 2022 and the first year-over-decrease in median prices since February of 2019. Meanwhile, single-family home sales for Sarasota and the condo markets for both counties have followed an opposite trajectory in March, albeit one similar to recent trends.” said Brian Tresidder, 2023 RASM President.
Continued below ……
CLICK HERE: Info courtesy of RASM
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Increases vary by county and property, but only a few condo owners could see a discount. Some Panhandle and non-coastal counties may see the biggest increase.
TALLAHASSEE Fla. – Citizens Property Insurance Corp. leaders approved a proposal Wednesday that would raise average rates by 14.2% this year as they continue to push policies into the private insurance market. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation must still approve the proposal for it to take effect.
Citizens is operated by Florida and the state’s “insurer of last resort.” It’s generally sold to property owners who cannot find affordable coverage elsewhere.
“For the economic well-being of the people of Florida, as well as for the good of Florida’s insurance market, Citizens must return to truly being that insurer of last resort for our state,” Citizens President and CEO Tim Cerio said to Citizens board members before they made the decision to increase rates, according to the News Service of Florida. “We must charge actuarially sound rates, and we must not be competitive with the private market.”
Citizens saw its policy count skyrocket from 569,868 on March 31, 2021, to 1,223,204 as of Friday, adding 13,000 policies in one week alone, as private insurers drop customers and increase rates due to financial troubles. Cerio said Citizens expects to top 1.5 million policies by the end of this year.
In December, the Florida Legislature passed legislation to help Florida’s insurance market, but “this isn’t a quick fix. It’s going to take time,” says Citizens Board of Governors Chairman Carlos Beruff.
Citizens prepared a 2023 rate kit, which provides members of the media with information about its 2023 rate filing, including county-by-county estimates for specific policy types and frequently asked questions.
Source: Florida Office of Insurance Regulation
© 2023 Florida Realtors®
One Park Sarasota is an 18-story, 123-residence tower wrapped in glass that pays tribute to the local architecture and promises exquisite attention to detail and a serene, holistic residential experience. Designed by Sarasota-based firm Hoyt Architects and developed by Property Markets Group (PMG), One Park will be a first-in-class luxury development in downtown Sarasota. To date, 75 people who love the Sarasota community have already purchased and are excited for the project to break ground.
“The concept was to create an iconic tower, creating a gateway building that would connect the front yard of “The Bay” with the activity energy center of Quay Commons and the Waterfront District.” – Gary Hoyt AIA, Hoyt Architects
Setting The Record Straight On One Park Sarasota
Though referenced as the soon-to-be largest building downtown, One Park Sarasota will not overshadow its neighbors in The Quay Sarasota in height nor size once completed. The unique angle of the property with its glass-lined facade will be a stunning addition to the area, seamlessly blending with its surroundings both natural and built.
By Comparison:
Thoughtful Development Approach
Decisions regarding the size of the property were made meticulously and intentionally in order to increase the overall benefit to those who will call the city of Sarasota home, beyond the residents of One Park Sarasota itself. The developer had the opportunity to build 150 units on the site where One Park will be built. After internal discussions, thoughtful decisions about the size of One Park were made with future residents of One Park, neighbors in the Quay and the community in mind. The developer reduced the size of the building by 18% to total 123 units. Reducing the saleable square footage and number of units allowed the architect to substantially increase the distance from the building to the property line in order to maximize light and air for residents and neighboring buildings.
One Park Activates Community Connection
Outdoors on the ground level, One Park Sarasota will deliver a 76-foot wide, 22-foot high, beautifully designed, well-lit and safe breezeway above Quay Commons with access to The Quay and The Bay Park from the Boulevard of the Arts. This dynamic pedestrian walkway will not only bring safe, widened sidewalks and lush greenery to an otherwise vacant space, but will also activate the space for Sarasota locals and residents. While the City of Sarasota code does not require the project to have any retail space, the developers of One Park are planning more than 13,000 square feet of retail, dining, and outdoor cafe seating. Whether someone is looking to grab coffee or find respite during a particularly rainy or hot summer day, this activated space will benefit all who visit The Quay by offering a seamless way to commute to and from its array of shopping and dining venues.
Developing With The City in Mind
During the planning phase of the project, the developer had the opportunity to maximize two buildable lots on the future site of One Park Sarasota. Rather than constructing two larger towers and forgoing any retail component in the development, the developer has chosen to create one seamless property that will activate the pedestrian experience with shops, restaurants, and cafes for the community to enjoy, serving as a warm welcome for all to The Quay. The development team is making a commitment to Sarasota. A commitment to provide not only the most architecturally significant building in downtown Sarasota, high-quality construction, mindfully designed interiors, sweeping vistas and best-in-class amenities for residents, but a commitment to the community to provide exciting retail offerings including shopping, restaurants, a café and expansive sidewalks, all as part of a well-lit and safe atmosphere for the community to enjoy.
To learn more about One Park Sarasota, visit OneParkSarasota.com or call 941-232-7035 to schedule an appointment at the Sales Gallery.
Courtesy of: The OBSERVER Sarasota