Time for ‘Mixed Housing’

Last month on our show, Pinnacle Housing Group’s partner Michael Wohl talked about the evolution of affordable housing and how Pinnacle is building Miami’s first mixed housing project, Brickell View Terrace. It is called “mixed” because it brings different renters at different income levels together in a single project. 

The 23-story development consists of 100 affordable housing units, 76 market rate units and about 7,300 square feet of ground-floor retail. The pricing options, amenities and location next to the Brickell Metrorail station should make the property attractive to millennials, Michael says.

The amenities include a barbecue area with outdoor gaming tables, a linear park, a fitness center, a computer room, a community room, a gazebo and car charging stations. Michael also makes sure he places beautiful art in public places to enhance the living environment of his projects.

Michael says significantly increasing project costs and land costs make it more difficult to build housing that’s affordable for Miami’s residents. He pointed to the run-up in land prices in some of Miami’s best neighborhoods. This increase is pricing out local workers and as a result, more workers live in the suburbs. This puts them on our roads for longer commutes, which increases traffic and has other negative impacts for community.

Michael believes that his mixed-income housing projects will help Miami not only put a dent in its traffic problem, but also help us get to know one another a little better. He thinks that will make Miami a better place for all of us to live. 

Also this month, we dove into cybersecurity with financial technology expert Jim Angleton, president of Aegis FinServ Corp. Jim focuses on making sure our financial system is secure. We discussed the deep Web, the dark Web and other places where hackers lurk. We also talked about ransomware – malicious software that gets into your computer, locks it down, and won’t open it up unless you pay the hacker a steep price.

Jim recommend using complex, randomly generated passwords and to change them regularly. He also reinforced the rule that you never click on emails or answer phone calls that you don’t recognize.

Also on the show was Steven Moreira, CCIM, CIPS, the incoming president of the CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) Institute. His focus is to build the CCIM brand as well as create “value adds” for his members. Steve gets to travel the country and see what is hot and what is not.

He told our audience that CCIMs get a bigger share of the market than their competitors because of the skills they are taught through the CCIM certification process and the referrals they get from the CCIM network of brokers. CCIMs share leads and ideas. Steve said we are reaching the top of the cycle in many markets but that there are still many good opportunities out there, particularly in retail and apartments.  

A final note: This month, our show is celebrating its six-year anniversary. We have done over 330 episodes. I want to take this opportunity to thank all of our listeners, sponsors and supporters. ?

To listen to these and other interviews, go to our website, friedonbusiness.com. We interview thought leaders every Thursday from 6 to 7 p.m. on 880 AM. Listen live by visiting bit.ly/jimlive.