Star Island Home Sold At Auction for $12,720,000

The Star Island home of Claudio Osorio and his wife Amarilis was sold at auction on Thursday for $12,720,000. The auction was part of a bankruptcy plan that allows Osorio to once again take over the reigns of his failed high-tech building materials company.

The property located at 15 Star Island Drive in Miami Beach is a 9 bedrooms home with approximately 8,700 square feet of interior living space, situated on a 40,000 square feet lot, with 100 feet of water frontage. The house, although contemporary in design, is in need of total renovation.

Three other Star Island properties have sold this year for prices ranging between $10,750,000 and $25,500,000. At this time 5 properties are for sale on the island, including a vacant lot at 30 Star Island.

The best deal on the island right now is an 8,100 square feet home, with 205 linear feet of water frontage lining a 48,266 square feet lot. The property located at 42 Star Island is in need of total renovation, but seems like a bargain compared to the sale that took place on Thursday.

Miami Real Estate Prices Poised To Increase With Gaming

Miami real estate values may once again increase, as gaming becomes a real possibility in Miami-Dade County. Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami, and state Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, will file gaming bills this month, according to a report in the Miami Herald last week.

The gaming bills will ask for permission to build three large resort casinos in the Miami area, and will seek a gambling commission for Florida, according to the Miami Herald report. Gaming licenses, which are presently housed under the DPR (Department of Business and Professional Regulation), will most likely be treated as a unique industry which would be regulated separately from other types of state licensing.

Genting Malaysia, a multibillion dollar casino group, may not take kindly to the idea of regulation changes, in light of their plans to build a $3 billion hotel casino facility in Miami. In addition, one cannot overlook a pending court case, where the issue in question is whether or not gaming legislation must come through a state constitutional amendment.

If gaming does come to Miami, real estate prices are sure to climb substantially, with an influx of new homeowners from all over the US, and from all over the world. Miami is well known as one of the worlds truly international cities.

Star Island Home for Sale $10,500,000

Star Island, as many Miami Beach residents know, is home to the rich and famous, including Sean Combs, Gloria and Emilio Estafan, Rosie O'Donnel, and Naomi Campbell and her billionaire boyfriend. In March of this year 10 of the 34 properties on Star Island were for sale. Five of those properties sold in the past 4 months, and just this weekend, another home was listed for sale on this exclusive island, a virtual gated enclave, accessible by just one bridge.


42 Star Island Drive is now for sale for the first time since 1978, when it was purchased by its present owner. The home, built in 1925, and undoubtedly one of Miami's finest properties, is situated on a 48,266 square feet lot, with 205 linear feet of water frontage, overlooking beautiful Biscayne Bay in Miami Beach, Florida. The 8 bedrooms 7 bathrooms home, with 3 guest houses, awaits the right person to restore some of it’s wonderful classic features. The property boasts an 8 ton boat lift with 4 boat slips, and a top of the line security system, with cameras all around the property. The price -- $10,500,000.

There are 3 other homes for sale on the island at the present time, including 5 Star Island Drive ($49,995,000), 40 Star Island Drive (29,500,000), and 29 Star Island Drive($21,000,000).

Sunset Island Home of Anna Kournikova for Sale $9,400,000

Anna Kournikova recently listed her Sunset Island home in Miami Beach, for sale for $9,400,000. The beautiful 6,630 square feet Sunset Island mansion boasts 7 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms, and is situated on a lot measuring 19,281 square feet, with 156 linear feet of water frontage.

The property is advertised as an "Ivy-covered, Mediterranean waterfront home on gated Sunset Island", with fine Saturnia and hardwood floors throughout, high ceilings, arched windows, a formal dining room, a living room with a fireplace, an island kitchen with granite countertops, a 2-story guest house, a sauna, and a large dock. Perfect for outdoor entertaining, the home boasts a covered entertaining area, a heated pool and a Jacuzzi, surrounded by a coral rock pool deck".

The Miami Beach home has only been for sale for 12 days. Kournikova purchased the property 11 years ago for $5,000,000.

The 4 beautiful exclusive islands off of Miami Beach's western shoreline, known as the Sunset Islands, are comprised of luxurious single family homes, some of which have the most breath taking views in Florida. Anna Kournikova's home has a very nice view of adjacent North Bay Road, but lacks the view of some of the finer properties on the opposite western end of the island.

Miami Real Estate Market Update

Photo courtesy of Lenny Furman

Miami real estate asking prices are still too high, and sellers still don’t get it. If one drives around Miami Beach, or Coral Gables, particularly in those areas where luxury homes are located, it becomes painfully obvious that there are almost as many homes for sale now as there were in early 2009, when the real estate market in Miami took a deep dive.

Many homeowners who want to sell, but whose homes are not up for sale, report that they are waiting for the market to change, before they place signs in front of their houses. They feel as though they will not be able to get what they consider to be a good price for their property if they try to sell now.

The reality is that they are not going to be able to get what they consider to be a good price, whether they wait or don’t wait, because the fact is that sales prices are where they should be.

Prices that homes were selling for in 2004 and 2005 were so inflated that when the bubble finally burst, almost everyone was shocked, and now in 2011, sales prices of single family luxury homes are more or less the same as they were 7 years ago -- exactly where they should be.

It is understandable why sellers are frustrated, because in America real estate is supposed to appreciate, and if prices are the same now as they were so long ago, it is very hard to accept. However, if homeowners who want to sell, come to the realization that 2004 and 2005 home prices were based on greed alone, and not on value, it may well become a little easier to accept.

Realtors are also very much to blame for the frustrations of homeowners, because in their zest to get a listing, they tell a homeowner whatever he/she wants to hear, in order to secure the listing. The owner, of course, believes the realtor, gives the agent the listing, and then becomes extremely frustrated, when 6 or 12 months pass by, and the seller receives no offers on the property.

What is the answer? It is very simple. Realtors need to tell the truth to homeowners, and homeowners who want to sell must necessarily become a lot more realistic than they are.

If anyone doubts the veracity of what is written here, one needs only to look at the facts. Here are the most recent statistics of home and condo sales in the Miami area.

Lil Wayne's House In Miami Beach For Sale

Lil Wayne’s house on La Gorce Island in Miami Beach is for sale -- that is what has been all over the internet today, on blog after blog. Is it true? No it’s not.

The latest rumor was started by an erroneous April 7th report by AOL Real Estate, stating that Lil Wayne put his La Gorce Island home up for sale due to tax problems.

Lil Wayne doesn’t own a house on Miami Beach, but it he reportedly rents a home on La Gorce Island. 94 La Gorce Circle is a 15,000 square feet home which was built in 2004, and except for the relatively small lot on which it is situated, could well be considered a Miami Beach mansion.

The home is advertised as an architectural masterpiece with “rich woods, expanses of glass, steel & select marble, lavished throughout this ultra-modern residence that features sky terraces with incredible views”.

In actuality, the property has been on the market for sale for quite some time. It was listed for sale in 2006 for $13.9 million, and has been on the market for most of the time since then. In November 2010 the price was dropped to $12.9 million, where it stands today.

Al Capone's House in Miami Beach For Sale $6.85 Million

Al Capone's house in Miami Beach on Palm Island is for sale. Advertised as an opportunity to make a piece of Miami Beach history your own, the house once belonging to the infamous gangster Al Capone, comes replete with City of Miami Beach approved plans for rebuilding.

The Palm Island home, located at 93 Palm Ave, Miami Beach, FL, was previously listed in 2006, for $6.8 million, and went through 2 pending sales since that time, with no closing ever taking place. It was relisted for sale this month for $50,000 more than the original asking price.

The historical 6,103 square feet house, is situated on a 3 quarters acre lot, with 100 linear feet of frontage facing neighboring Hibiscus Island and Biscayne Bay. Built in 1922, the Capone house is one of the oldest homes in Miami Beach. Henry Morrison, who still owns the house, according to the Miami Dade property records, purchased it in 1971 for $56,000.

Star Island Real Estate Update

Star Island real estate in Miami Beach has suddenly become readily available to the rich and famous. Star Island, long considered the most exclusive community in all of Miami, is composed of 34 waterfront properties. In this writer’s opinion, the homes in Indian Creek Village are much more exclusive, but that, of course, is an opinion.

Star Island sits like a floating jewel in the aquamarine waters of Biscayne Bay, between the main land and Miami Beach. The waters surrounding the island are part of the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve. Star Island is not only coveted for its supreme, unspoiled waterfront location and limited number of residents, but also for its extreme privacy. Accessible by just one bridge, the gated enclave is the home of Miami's wealthy elite.

Some of the most famous residents of this very pricey community are Sean Combs (P Diddy), Gloria and Emilio Estafan, Rosie O’Donnel, and Naomi Campbell and her billionaire boyfriend (who bought the mansion previously owned by Shaquille O’Neal). The largest property on Star Island is a 28,000 square feet mansion situated on a 6 acre parcel of land, owned by Phillip Frost and his wife. Frost used to run a large American drug company called IVAX, which was sold several years ago, to TEVA, an Israeli drug company.

Today, 10 of the 34 properties on Star Island are for sale. Never before have so many Star Island homes been offered for sale at the same time. Four of the properties are vacant lots, valued by their owners from $7.9 million to $8.9 million, although it is unlikely that any of them will sell for those rather hefty prices. The other 6 luxury homes for sale are priced from $9.875 million to $49.995 million. The following properties are presently for sale on Star Island.

5 Star Island Drive $49,995,000
13 Star Island Drive $32,000,000
40 Star Island Drive $27,000,000
29 Star Island Drive $24,000,000
27 Star Island Drive $12,950,000
45 Star Island Drive $9,875,000
30 Star Island Drive $8,900,000
35 Star Island Drive $8,725,000
36 Star Island Drive $8,725,000
28 Star Island Drive $7,900,000

Whether or not any of these ultra-luxury properties are sold this year, is left to be seen, but if some of them are sold, it should come as no surprise, in light of a report published yesterday by the Miami Association of Realtors. The report states that pending sales of homes and condos, an accurate indicator of future market conditions, rose 22 percent in Dade County last month, year over year to 11,182 from 9,164 in February 2010.

Dwyane Wade Buys Miami Beach House For $10,650,000

Dwyane Wade just bought a Miami Beach house on North Bay Road. The 28 year old Miami Heat, NBA all-star looked at more than 50 properties, before finally settling on the house he now calls home.

Dwyane Wade's house, located on upper North Bay Road in Miami Beach, is just a few blocks away from the house that Chris Bosh purchased just a couple of months ago, and less than one block away from the home owned by actor Matt Damon.

The 8 bedrooms house sits on a lot just over an acre, boasts 150 linear feet of bay frontage, and has more than 13,000 square feet of living area.

Dwyane Wade paid $10.65 million for the property, and ensured that North Bay Road in Miami Beach now has one more celebrity living on the block.

LeBron James Buys Miami House For $9,000,000

LeBron James House In Miami Florida -- Coconut Grove

LeBron James, 25 years old Miami Heat basketball star, just bought a Miami home. The beautiful house, located in the Coconut Grove area of Miami, has 6 bedrooms and 8 and 1/2 bathrooms, with more than 12,000 square feet of interior living space. The lot, just under 20,000 square feet, is a tad small for such a grandiose mansion, but the proximity of the property to American Airlines Arena, where the Miami Heat play their home games, may well have been a deciding factor in Mr. James' decision to buy the home.

The 3-stories estate, located at 3590 Crystal View Court in Coconut Grove, has water views from every room, and a 3rd floor master suite, which boasts a huge balcony overlooking Biscayne Bay. The Miami home, just completed in 2010, also has a concrete dock, suitable for two 60 feet yachts. Previously purchased in 2005, for $3,500,000, the property was razed, and a new home was built. The owner listed it in January of this year for $12,900,000, and reduced the price to $11,900,000, before James purchased it and closed the deal for $9,000,000 less than a week ago.