By Jim Fried
On this month’s show, we talked about urban development in Miami and what real estate investing trends across the country are going to look like. We even got a glimpse of the future when we met some terrific young people.
I had a great conversation with Chaim Cahane, an investor in the neighborhoods that are close to Miami’s urban core. He initially invested in Wynwood, but started buying in areas such as Little River and Little Havana as pricing increased in Wynwood. He works with capital partners from New York and provides them with local representation.
Chaim is redeveloping a number of buildings in Wynwood – including the Wynwood Arcade at 50 NW 24th St. – and seeing strong tenant demand. He is also the first developer in Wynwood to secure a Fortune 500 company: Revlon. He sees no letup in demand for infill locations in Miami. He and his investors are actively seeking more opportunities.
We also talked to Mark Cosenza, a senior vice president at Inland Real Estate Acquisitions. He buys properties all across the country and also helps Inland to secure financing. He sees a big push to acquire assets with solid, well-defined cash flow such as apartments, grocery-anchored retail centers and self-storage facilities. He also sees Miami as a market in which he would like to invest that may be a bit overheated. Pricing is high in South Florida, but he thinks he will eventually be able to buy here.
Mark thinks many other markets provide better investment opportunities. For example, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville and other “second tier” markets still offer value.
Inland also develops its own project and can act as a joint venture partner.
We also had one of my favorite guests of all time: Reinaldo Cardenas and his debate coach Davalyn Suarez. They were joined by Nalisa Saati, program director of the Miami-Dade Urban Debate League (MDUDL).
We discussed MDUDL and its impact on the young people in our community. Reinaldo is our future; he is smart, confident and well-spoken, and he made a great impression on the show. We discussed how the Urban Debate League brings young people from across South Florida together so that they can build confidence and learn the techniques that will help them communicate successfully in the future. ↵
You can hear each of these interviews in their entirety at friedonbusiness.com. Look for our show Thursdays at 6 p.m. on 880 AM in Miami.
