Tech CEO Jody Glidden paid $4.8 million last month for a new home in Biscayne Park, a small town that’s sandwiched between Miami Shores and North Miami.
Glidden, who is dating “The Real Housewives of Miami” cast member Lisa Hochstein, bought the tropical modern home after selling his waterfront Hibiscus Island home for $11.9 million last year. But he’s not planning to live in the house; instead, he said he will rent it out. And he’s looking for more properties in the village that he can purchase and redevelop, he told The Real Deal.
His purchase in Biscayne Park marks one of a handful of deals that have set records for the village, as wealthy buyers increasingly seek proximity to private schools like Miami Country Day School, which recently secured approval for a renovation/modernization of the campus, and the Cushman School.
“Brand-new construction modern houses are breaking barriers in these alternative neighborhoods,” said luxury broker Dora Puig, owner of Luxe Living Realty. Puig compared price growth in Biscayne Park to what happened in neighborhoods like Morningside and Belle Meade. She called it a testament to the demand for private schools, as parents don’t want to spend hours in traffic.
Glidden, founder of software companies Introhive and Postilize, picked up a canalfront home that spans nearly 6,000 square feet with six bedrooms and five and a half bathrooms on a half-acre lot. The price amounts to $800 per square foot.
“Areas like Biscayne Park still offer pretty good value. If you want to make a decent multiple on your property, it’s harder to do now in other parts of [Miami],” Glidden said.
The developer, a partnership with Aaron Butler of Avenue Real Estate and Kobi and Nancy Karp, paid $1.4 million for the lot in 2022. Butler, who also brokered the sale, said the proximity to Miami Country Day, the village’s curb appeal and low crime rate attracted him to invest.
“I would develop [in Biscayne Park] again. We’re looking,” Butler said.
At least two other newly built houses have sold in recent months in the same price range as Glidden’s purchase. The house had been sitting on the market, but because Glidden paid cash, the deal served as a catalyst for additional sales, creating a comparable deal that appraisers can use.
Butler said it’s a “transitional time” for the community.
Puig recently brokered the $5.3 million sale of the four-bedroom, five-and-a-half-bathroom house at 967 Northeast 117th Street. The 4,355-square-foot house was built on a third of an acre. An affiliate of Pintos Residential, led by Rodrigo Pintos and Roberto Lopez, sold the property to an LLC managed by an attorney in late November.
The property previously sold for $450,000 in 2021.
A month earlier, a couple paid $4.6 million for the 4,860-square-foot, six-bedroom and seven-and-a-half-bathroom house at 740 Northeast 120th Street. A developer LLC led by Daniel Jaramillo sold the newly built house, which also sits on a third-acre lot. Coldwell Banker’s Juan Zuluaga represented the seller, and Andrea Tavella with Vella Real Estate brought the buyers.
The lot previously sold for $750,000 in 2022.
Miami Country Day, one of the top private schools in South Florida, recently secured approval to revise its master plan to include more properties that the school owns and to raise the height of some planned buildings to three stories, instead of two, said Francisco Garcia of the Euclid Group. The land-use consulting firm is working on the expansion of Miami Country Day’s upper and middle school campus. The project calls for a new dining center, improved traffic flow and green space.
The school also recently opened a $20 million fitness and wellness center.
“Without question there is exceeding demand for educational facilities in Miami-Dade County, particularly in the private school sector,” Garcia said, noting that while new buildings will be constructed, the school’s enrollment capacity will remain the same.
“[Biscayne Park] really is in a fortunate geographic location,” he added. “Traffic is going to be an issue for us for the indefinite future.”
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Residential
South Florida
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