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RAMB holds ‘Investing in Office Space’ seminar

Posted on Fri, Aug. 22, 2008

(From left to right): Marcello Agostini, Fortune International’s director of sales for 1200 Brickell; RAMB Vice President of Commercial Paul Cauchi; Luis de la Aguilera, executive vice president/lending group for TotalBank; Rodrigo Gomez, co-director of sales at 1200 Brickell.

Citing continued interest in the South Florida office condo market, Real Estate Association of Miami and the Beaches (RAMB) Vice President of Commercial Paul Cauchi began a spirited panel discussion on the opportunities and financial implications facing both investors and end-users who are intrigued by the prospects of office ownership.

Joining Cauchi for the discussion were Marcello Agostini, Fortune International’s director of sales for 1200 Brickell, Rodrigo Gomez, co-director of sales at 1200 Brickell, and Luis de la Aguilera, executive vice president/lending group for TotalBank. The seminar took place at 1200 Brickell.

According to the panel of experts, the office condo concept has been around for 30 or 40 years, but only in the past five years has it truly garnered significant attention.

“The U.S. has a culture of renting. Europeans and Latins have a culture of owning,” Agostini said.

In describing the office condo purchaser, Agostini said there are two distinct demographics. The end-user who intends to occupy the office buys as a hedge against future rent escalations and enjoys the pride in ownership, and the investor who appreciates the immediate cash flow stream from a tenant-in-place. Both types are investing in the potential appreciation owning an office might yield in the long term.

“Brickell is the most active sub-market in South Florida for office condos,” said de la Aguilera. “We’ve even created a special financing product just for the office condo purchaser that is completely customizable for the individual company’s needs and situation.”

The past several years in South Florida saw most of the developable land in the urban core going to residential projects, said Agostini. That has created a scarcity of prime office space in the Brickell area and has been responsible for 29% year-on-year increases in office rent. Office ownership protects the owner from those kinds of increases which can dramatically affect a company’s overhead costs, he said.

“The residential unit surplus has also impacted lenders, as down payments now can be as much 30%,” said de la Aguilera. “But our perspective on office condos is different, and we may only require as low as 10% down. In addition, there are loan packages available for office condos where build-out and equipment can be factored into the loan.”

“New leases in the area run from $37 to $42 per square foot,” Gomez said. “1200 Brickell is starting at $450 per square foot. A lot of smart companies are doing the math and coming to the conclusion that owning is far smarter for the long term than renting.”

Companies interested in learning more about office ownership at 1200 Brickell can call Fortune International, the developer of the project, at (305) 351-1000 or click www.1200Brickell.com.

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