// SOUTH FLORIDA OUTLOOK
The outlook is bright for the South Florida economy, which
has climbed out from the depth of the recession; the previous
12 to 24 months accelerated the process. During the previous
24 months, unemployment in South Florida (the Region) dropped
250 basis points, and more than 72,800 jobs were created in 2014 the highest level of job growth in a decade. This has been the result
of South Florida’s economic cornerstones performing at record
levels. Tourism is one of the Region’s biggest economic drivers and
South Florida saw a record high of 27.7 million visitors in 2014. As
a result, hotel occupancy was the highest it had ever been, leading
to a 2.8 percent increase in leisure and hospitality employment
last year. The visitor market, together with elevated consumer
confidence as the economy improves, also heavily impacted retail
sales and employment. Retail sales across South Florida increased
14.7 percent in November 2014 compared to November 2013,
which corresponded to 10,100 additional jobs in that sector during
the year. On an annual basis, sales increased 6.2 percent from
2012 to 2013, the last full year for which data is available.
housing market – in turn leading to increased office employment.
Professional and business services and financial services
employment all increased during the year, and are expected to
continue to grow over both the short and long term.
These positive economic indicators have drawn developers and
investors to the market with a number of game changing projects
underway in South Florida, promising to transform the Region,
particularly Miami. One such project is already under construction
in the heart of Brickell. Brickell City Center, from Hong Kong-based
Swire Properties, is a $1.1 billion development comprising 565,000
square feet of retail, two office towers totaling 260,000 square feet,
over 850 residential units and 260 hotel rooms. Miami Worldcenter
is another development that aims on capturing the heavy retail
demand and strong visitor market in Miami. When fully completed,
the development will include over 760,000 square feet of retail,
1,800 hotel rooms, and a 600,000-square-foot convention center, as
well as luxury apartment residences. Another transformative project
now under construction is the All Aboard Florida Miami Central
Station. The station will be the main hub for the high speed train that
will link Orlando and Miami with stops in West Palm Beach and Fort
Lauderdale, each with associated developments. The main Miami
station will encompass 800,000 square feet of retail, hotel, office
and residential units. These three large scale projects, as well as
the myriad of other developments across the Region will transform
the South Florida real estate landscape.
The housing marketing in South Florida, another economic pillar,
is improving strongly after a substantial blow during the recession.
With in-migration to the Region picking up, the housing market has
tightened – there is currently only a two-month supply of homes
on the market in the tri-county area. In addition, home prices