UPDATED July 24, 12:30 p.m.: Douglas Elliman plans to relocate its Design District office as well as its development marketing team to 5555 Biscayne Boulevard, The Real Deal has learned.
The brokerage signed a lease for the entire third floor, or nearly 6,000 square feet, at the office building recently renovated by Avra Jain’s Vagabond Group. Elliman will make the move in about six months, once the space is built out, Jay Parker, CEO of the brokerage’s South Florida division, confirmed to TRD.
Since it acquired Majestic Properties in June 2014, Elliman has occupied about 3,000 square feet at 35 Northeast 40th Street in the Design District. That building, owned by Redsky Capital, is slated for redevelopment.
Elliman’s development marketing team, which now operates out of parent Vector Group’s corporate offices at 4400 Biscayne Boulevard, will also join in the move to 5555 Biscayne. In all, the space will serve as the office for about 100 agents.
“We needed more space, we needed a more functional location with parking and accessibility and visibility,” Parker said. “It’s a great location with great exposure on Biscayne.”
Jain and partner Joe Del Vecchio’s 261 Bumblebee LLC acquired the property for $2.2 million in 2014, property records show. Leasing for the 23,000-square-foot building began in October 2015, during construction, which included gutting and updating the interiors, putting in new floor-to-ceiling glass windows and installing six new balconies. Metro 1 is handling leasing.
Asking rent is $40 per square foot, according to Loopnet. The only tenant currently in the building is Apure, an architectural lighting company with products designed by Porsche Design Studio.
Elliman has 20 offices and more than 1,000 agents in South Florida. In addition to its Design District location, the firm has five other offices in Miami-Dade County, including three in Miami Beach, one in Coconut Grove and one in Aventura. In TRD’s October 2016 ranking of top new development marketing firms, it placed fourth, with 1,757 units over 18 projects.