The value of South Florida real estate continues to increase and many local residents are feeling the effects. According to a report published by the Miami Association of Realtors, prices of single-family houses and condominiums grew by 9 – 14% in November in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, compared to the same month of 2021.
The average cost of a single-family home in Miami-Dade was $550,000 in November, which is 9% higher than $502,750 a year ago. The average apartment price was $395,000, or 14% more than $326,790 last year.
Ken Johnson, Finance Professor at the Florida Atlantic University, says that the low supply remains the key problem in the Miami housing market. He also declared that turning vacant houses into long-term rentals instead of leasing them out via Airbnb could improve the situation significantly.
The huge number of Airbnb users took long-term lease off the market, replacing it with short-term stays, Professor Johnson explains. People who own a second house in South Florida and those who come to the Sunshine State only for the winter, from places like Boston and New York, should think about leasing their property to locals. This will boost the supply and reduce the rent.
Professor Johnson is sure that the society will have to put pressure on local homeowners associations because their introducing strict rules to limit the rent is the key driver behind the rent crisis. There is no proof that leasing an apartment in your building has a negative effect on its value.
Clidiane Aubourg is a resident who felt the pressure of the housing affordability crisis. She used to own a property in Miami Beach that she had to sell to make the ends meet. Aubourg is one of many Miami residents trying to find a new home. The rent on her apartment in Little River used to be $900 per month but gentrification and the unstable housing market changed her community.
Throughout most of the pandemic, Aubourg (53) worked remotely as a customer support representative from her home in Little River. From June to November, she was looking for a new job and fell behind with the rent. Her landlord initiated the eviction process.
The woman applied to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in October and was granted the right to participate in it in December. She had trouble using this assistance, however, because the program depends on whether the landlord is ready to accept it and the appointed social worker was not able to find a leasing office or landlord to deal with the program.
Aubourg checked every available residential project within a 40-minute drive from Miami but all in vain. She used to belong to the middle class but it is over now.