Ritzy Fort Lauderdale condo building starts near New River
Sixth & Rio, pictured above in a rendering, will add 100 condo residences near the New River in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
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Following the craze for luxury living in Broward County, a boutique condominium catering to wealthy buyers is rising in a trendy slice of downtown Fort Lauderdale.
Sixth & Rio, an eight-story condo building with 100 residences priced up to $2.5 million, started construction last week at 501 SE Sixth Ave., south of the New River.
The high condo price tags, often the norm in southern neighbor Miami, show that the city of Fort Lauderdale has remade itself after being known nationwide until the early 1980s as a bastion for college spring breakers.
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An affiliate of Fort Lauderdale-based development firm OceanLand Investments Inc. expects to finish its real estate project by early 2025, said Jean Francois Roy, founder and CEO of OceanLand Investments.
“People want to come to Fort Lauderdale. Before, they weren’t sure,” Roy said. “People now are excited. You don’t have to sell it anymore.”
Dubbed the Venice of America, Fort Lauderdale’s transformation to a desirable place to live, work and play started in the mid-1980s with development pioneers like the Motwani family. Several developers have claimed a spot in the increasingly popular city, delivering oceanfront developments such as Paramount Fort Lauderdale and Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, Fort Lauderdale. The city’s New River also has drawn builders like the Motwanis who opened The Wharf Fort Lauderdale in 2019.
At Sixth & Rio, condo prices will start at $900,000 for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom layout that’s a little more than 800 square feet. The largest unit with three bedrooms and bathrooms in 2,449 square feet will carry a $2.5 million price tag.
Since sales began in January, Roy said 40 of the condos have been sold, mostly to nearby empty nesters or residents looking for a living change. The building includes a lounge, multiple pools and cabanas on the rooftop, gym and a co-working area.
Single-family homes surround the Sixth & Rio property, as well as a few boutique residential buildings. The site sits across the river from the Historic Stranahan House Museum, the home of the city’s founding father Frank Stranahan. It’s also near the bustling Las Olas Boulevard where pedestrians dip in and out of the many restaurants, cafes and shops lining the street.
OceanLand Investments paid $11.3 million for the property covering less than an acre in 2021. Where Sixth & Rio is being built, the developer bought out the residents of a boutique condo building and tore it down.
Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel real estate appraisers and consultants in New York, said buyers are betting big now on Fort Lauderdale, especially in pockets they think will increase in value in the coming years. The city has only gained a greater following during the pandemic, Miller said, following the wealth migration moving to South Florida. Many residents from the Northeast have moved here since 2020 from high-tax states with colder weather and strict COVID-19 public health rules.
“Fort Lauderdale is keyed up for this. This shows Fort Lauderdale, like many other markets, is transitioning from a nice place to visit to a great place to live,” Miller said. “Part of the reason why we’re seeing all of this luxury development is because the market is proving to be a draw.”
As new projects add density to the city, the Fort Lauderdale Downtown Development Authority, an independent taxing district established in 1965, focuses on enhancing education, transportation and housing affordability.
“Housing affordability is one of the top three areas that need to be addressed to allow the positive momentum continue into the future,” Jenni Morejon, the organization’s CEO.
