South Florida's commercial property market recorded $4.3 billion in investment sales during the first quarter, a 29.9 percent increase from the same period last year, according to a new report from Avison Young. A total of 244 transactions closed, representing a 10.9 percent rise in deal count. The surge was concentrated in two asset classes—industrial properties and development sites—while multifamily sales declined after years of dominance. The divergence marks a significant shift in how capital is flowing through one of the nation's most active commercial markets.
Industrial properties led the rally with nearly $1.3 billion in deal volume across 79 sales, a 102.4 percent increase from the first quarter of last year. Blackstone's Link Logistics emerged as the most active buyer, paying $195.9 million for an eight-building warehouse portfolio in Boynton Beach last month. That purchase followed the firm's $163.1 million acquisition of a four-warehouse complex in Broward County. The sustained appetite for South Florida warehouses reflects persistent land constraints that limit the region's supply of sites large enough to accommodate modern distribution facilities.
Development sites registered $503.9 million in sales across 22 transactions, marking a nearly 123 percent jump in volume from the prior year. While a record $520 million bayfront development site in Brickell closed in December, the first quarter produced several notable trades. Japanese firm Kasumigaseki Capital paid $88.8 million in March for a 1.4-acre site at the Miami Worldcenter mixed-use complex in downtown Miami's Park West neighborhood. In Wynwood, Ultimate Equity's David Sedaghati sold a nearly two-acre assemblage entitled for a Live Local Act project for $54 million.
Retail properties recorded $642 million in deal volume, a nearly 65 percent increase year-over-year. Some of the activity centered on Miami Beach's Lincoln Road promenade, a shopping and dining corridor that has lost some of its appeal in recent years as newer retail destinations such as Wynwood and the Miami Design District have gained traction. A group of brokers and investors are now betting on the street's revival. Shahab Karmely's New York-based KAR Properties acquired an AllSaints-leased Lincoln Road building last month for $15 million, signaling renewed confidence in the historic retail strip.
Office transactions reached nearly $885 million, a modest 2.7 percent increase from the first quarter of last year. South Florida earned a reputation during the pandemic for a thriving office market fueled by an influx of out-of-state companies. More recently, blue-to-red state migration by wealthy individuals has revived interest, as these new arrivals are expected to open private or corporate offices. However, many of these tenants are gravitating toward boutique buildings rather than legacy towers in Brickell and downtown Miami. Moishe Mana's $110 million purchase of the 31-story One Downtown tower in downtown Miami was among the quarter's largest office trades.
Capital rotating into industrial and development sites while exiting multifamily suggests the same money that crowds an asset class on the way up often gets stuck on the way down, family office advisor Jaf Glazer has argued.
The multifamily market's retreat follows a five-year period during which apartments were the region's most sought-after asset class. After the pandemic's onset, unprecedented rental demand drove record rates and a wave of investment sales. That tide has turned in recent years as new supply has flooded the market while the influx of newcomers has slowed. A record 18,600 units were completed in 2024, representing 20 percent more than total leasing for that year, according to CoStar Group data. Last year's completions totaled 12,718 units, slightly above the 12,452 units leased.
Despite the cooling investment climate, developers have launched new apartment projects this year, arguing they are carefully selecting submarkets and anticipating that demand will rebound by the time their buildings are finished. In the first quarter's largest multifamily trades, RPM Living and Cantor Fitzgerald acquired the 380-unit Biscayne Shores complex, which includes rental townhomes, for $151.4 million. New York-based Maxx Properties paid $70 million for the 250-unit Ellery complex in Plantation. These transactions, while significant, represented a fraction of the multifamily volume recorded in prior years.
Avison Young broker Michael Fay characterized the multifamily and office markets as "moderating," describing the shift as a "natural progression." The comment reflects a broader recalibration in South Florida's commercial property landscape, where capital is rotating from residential rental assets toward income-producing properties with tighter supply dynamics. The first quarter's results suggest that family offices and institutional investors are increasingly favoring industrial and development opportunities over the apartment complexes that dominated deal flow throughout the post-pandemic boom.