Country Guides Country Guide: Miami

Date Published:

30/05/2008

Where To Buy

Miami can broadly be split into North, South, West and Downtown – although many areas overlap and don’t have distinct borders. The city’s cultural and tourist attractions are located in Downtown Miami, which is located on the eastern side of the city, furthest from the Atlantic Ocean. Downtown includes areas such as Brickell, Virginia Key and the Port of Miami. The western side of Miami, which includes Little Havana, is traditionally where émigrés have headed for. Although more mixed than ever before it still has a predominantly Hispanic feel.

The rich and famous tend to gather in the north eastern areas, such as Midtown and Upper East Side, with its many beautiful 1920s homes and the MiMo Historic District, which is famous for its architecture. South Beach, which is the section of Miami Beach that covers the southernmost 23 blocks of an island separating the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, is home to the iconic Art Deco Hotels that are synonymous with the city. Miami south is a historic residential neighbourhood, built in the 1920s, and is home to many older properties and historic parks. Rounding off the city, the northern side is probably the most diverse district and has a bohemian ambience.

What To Buy

What to buy depends on the size of your budget and your space requirements – but there is a whole new language that you’ll need to learn, as property is real estate in the USA and nothing is called the same as it is in the UK. To begin with, a condo is what we call a flat or an apartment - a residential dwelling split into two or more owned homes. It's important to bear in mind that, in the US, an 'apartment' is not owned but rented.

Next, terraced houses are called 'townhomes' or 'linked homes'; detached houses are called 'single-family homes'; and anything that’s not new is called 'existing' (as in an 'existing single-family home').

Armed with that information, you’re ready to go house hunting. Twelfth on West epitomizes Miami style. An exclusive residence located in the heart of a vibrant South Beach neighbourhood, it’s a six-story modernist masterpiece with 29 stylishly tailored lofts, flats and penthouses, ranging in size from 60 to 1,17 air-conditioned square metres. A rooftop heated pool with oversized day beds and a meditation garden provides a space for enjoying spectacular South Beach sunsets. Prices start from US$487,000 for a one-bedroom apartment with Azure Property International.