May 2021
Swire Properties sold the remaining 81 condos at Brickell City Centre’s Rise and Reach towers to KAR Properties and Fortune International Group.
According to a source close to the deal, the price was just over $65 million.
New York-based KAR Properties, led by CEO Shahab Karmely, and Miami-based Fortune International, led by President and CEO Edgardo Defortuna, will look to sell the condo units to future residents. Fortune is also one of South Florida’s largest brokerages.
“Brickell City Centre has enhanced Miami’s Brickell neighborhood, bringing high end retailers, global cuisine and entertainment to the community,” Defortuna said. “It is clear Swire Properties has developed a landmark destination for the community.”
Swire completed the condos in 2016 as part of the mixed-use Brickell City Centre, which also includes an open-air mall, a movie theater, offices, and a hotel. The 5 million-square-foot project has attracted more visitors and businesses to Brickell.
However, selling out the condos in Rise and Reach has taken some time. Swire started marketing them in 2014, before the buildings were completed.
Three years ago, Swire hired ISG World to take over sales at the project. ISG World CEO Craig Studnicky said they initially approached Swire about a bulk sale a few years ago. A deal was nearly in place, but the Covid-19 pandemic caused it to fall apart. Near the end of 2020, he was helping Swire negotiate a bulk deal with a group from New York, but it didn’t happen. Over that time, ISG World brokered sales for nearly 80 condos at Brickell City Centre to individual buyers, he added.
Ultimately, ISG World helped Swire reach the deal with KAR Properties and Fortune. Given the sharp decline in new condo inventory in Brickell, there should be strong demand from buyers, Studnicky said.