Billion-Dollar Deals: South Florida's Luxury Real Estate Market Kicks Off 2026 with Record Sales

South Florida's luxury real estate market kicked off 2026 with a flurry of record-breaking deals. According to the latest Eklund-Gomes report, a group of investors sold their non-waterfront Miami Beach home for nearly $18 million, making it the most expensive of seven contracts signed in Miami-Dade County between Dec. 29, 2025, and Jan. 4, 2026. The properties in this report were listings of homes and condos asking $4 million and up in Miami-Dade that were included in the Multiple Listing Service. The average time spent on the market for these properties was 68 days. Meanwhile, luxury homebuilder Alex Pirez sold his waterfront Gables Estates mansion for a record-breaking $55 million. The sale, which closed earlier this year, was recorded for $9 million but was actually much higher, according to sources. Pirez is the owner of Mocca Group and Mocca Realty. These deals come as two major developers, Oak Row Equities and Vlad Doronin’s OKO Group, paid $520 million for a bayfront Brickell property in December. This sale marked the biggest development site sale in Miami and likely the state, adding fuel to the real estate industry's narrative that Miami's financial district is a prime market. Nick Pérez, president of the condo division at Related Group, has a clear view of South Florida’s condo market, especially the ultra-high-end segment. From September to early December of 2025, Related and its partners sold $450 million worth of condos, with more to come. Between October 2025 and this coming March, Related and its partners are completing condo projects totaling 1,500 units, including the Crosby at Miami Worldcenter and Nomad Residences Wynwood. Despite these record-breaking deals, some lenders remain skittish as South Florida has felt the sting of elevated interest rates. However, the strength of the luxury real estate market in Miami's financial district suggests that it remains a prime market, insulated from the headwinds felt in most of the rest of the tri-county region and much of the nation. Sources: - Related’s Nick Pérez on the state of South Florida’s condo market - $18M Sunset Islands deal tops pending contracts at year’s start - Luxury home developer Alex Pirez sold his Gables Estates mansion for $55M - Map: Inside Miami’s biggest dev site sales following record $520M Brickell deal