Major players are acquiring large properties north and south of Miami-Dade.

Homebuilders, counting on the growing demand for housing in Miami-Dade County to extend beyond the county’s borders, are purchasing large parcels of land to the north and south for housing construction. Sunrise, Florida-based GL Homes paid $34 million to acquire 421 acres (169 hectares) north of Palm Beach in western St. Lucie County and plans to seek county approval to build 1,100 homes on the site, CoStar reported. GL Homes also acquired 57 acres west of Palm Beach Gardens for $23.5 million in a separate transaction and plans to add 225 homes to the planned Avenir community there. “We remain optimistic that these markets will be an attractive destination for discerning homebuyers seeking the quintessential Florida lifestyle and abundant business opportunities in one of the strongest job markets in the country,” Misha Ezratti, president of GL Homes, said in a statement. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metropolitan area added 66,600 new jobs in May 2024 compared to May 2023. South Florida’s local job growth rate of 2.3% exceeded the national average of 1.8%. More and more South Florida residents moving out of Miami and Fort Lauderdale to St. Lucie County and other areas of the so-called Treasure Coast. The land acquired by GL Homes is located near the rapidly growing Riverland master-planned community in Port St. Lucie, a 4,000-acre development where GL has the approval to build a total of 11,700 homes. In addition, large housing developers are buying up undeveloped land south of Miami. Arlington, Texas-based homebuilder DR Horton paid $65 million for 97 acres of farmland in Homestead for a planned mixed-use development. The development, known as Sandero Landing, will include 1,170 residential units and 216,000 square feet of commercial space. According to a report by Vizzda, the residential portion of Sandero Landing will include 417 apartments, 691 townhomes, and 62 live-work units. The development will include a grocery store, fitness center, and emergency room. A “Southeast Florida Housing Outlook 2024-2025” released last month by Miami Realtors predicts that falling mortgage rates, rising job gains, and improving affordability conditions will boost home sales in the region by 4% in 2025. “Sales growth is driven by a 7.8% increase in single-family home sales, while condo and townhome sales are flat as potentially higher condo fees due to the implementation of the Building Safety Act dampen demand,” the report said. The Building Safety Act requires condominiums older than 30 years to set aside reserves for structural improvements. According to a University of Florida analysis, 74% of condominium buildings in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties were built in 1993 or earlier.