UPDATED Jan. 29, 2019, 5:10 p.m.: Amid the condo sales slowdown, Bradley Deckelbaum’s Premier Developers scored a $27.8 million inventory loan for 26 unsold units at Riva in Fort Lauderdale, The Real Deal has learned.
The 15-story, 100-unit condominium tower at 1180 North Federal Highway, overlooking the Middle River, was completed last year.
JLL’s Aaron Appel, Michael Diaz, Chris Bryn and Matt Fagella arranged the refinancing. Man Group PLC is the lender.
A spokesperson for JLL confirmed the condo inventory loan covers unsold units at the project. A spokesperson for Douglas Elliman said there are 26 units unsold. Premier had secured a $65 million construction loan from New York-based Madison Realty Capital in May 2017.
Deckelbaum was not immediately available to comment.
Douglas Elliman took over sales and marketing for Riva’s remaining units in May 2018 from One Sotheby’s International Realty. One Sotheby’s had launched sales for the project in 2015.
Three years after launching sales, Deckelbaum lowered the deposit requirement from 35 percent to 20 percent in a push to sell more units.
Riva’s condos range from two-bedroom units priced from the $700,000s to penthouses starting at $2.29 million, with a projected sellout of $135 million.
Falkanger Snyder Martineau & Yates designed the building, which has 40,000 square feet of amenities, including a spa facility, fitness center, pool, 22 boat slips, and a 60-foot-wide glass walled lobby overlooking the water. The project also features a 400-foot riverwalk.
Facing slow sales for new luxury condos, developers are increasingly taking out condo inventory loans to cover carrying costs. Among them, Property Markets Group in October scored a $39 million inventory loan from Pebb Capital for Muse Residences in Sunny Isles Beach. PMG and its partner S2 Development began recording closings of the 68-unit, 49-story tower at 17100 Collins Avenue last June.
Regalia Beach Developers also secured a $29 million condo inventory loan for its two remaining unsold developer units — the penthouse and “beach house” in August. Atalaya Capital Management provided the financing for Regalia, also in Sunny Isles. A group led by developers Kevin Venger and Louis R. Montello completed the 39-story tower at 19575 Collins Avenue in 2014, but listed the beach house for $35 million in 2016 and the penthouse in 2017 for $39 million.