Most builders spend years trying to sell out a new building. Cipriani Residences Miami is not most buildings.
The 85-story skyscraper rises 950 feet in Miami's Brickell neighborhood and will be the city's tallest residential tower when it finishes. But buyers are not waiting to see the view.
That kind of global demand is rare for any residential project, let alone one that will not hand over keys until 2027. The building has reached its full height and is on track to be the only new residential tower delivering finished homes in Brickell that year. For now, it sits as a steel-and-concrete symbol of where the money in American real estate has been heading.
The buyer list reads like a VIP section. According to a report in The New York Post, soccer icon Lionel Messi bought four units in the tower. Executives from Citadel and Amazon are also said to be among the buyers. The developer confirmed that most purchasers are either wealthy individuals or top corporate executives relocating to Miami.
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Camilo Miguel Jr., founder and CEO of Mast Capital, said the reason is straightforward. "One of the main reasons that people are choosing Miami over New York City right now is the pro-business mentality," he said. "You live in a business-friendly city and a business-friendly state, and the growth and the global nature of our city."
The draw is also international. Political and economic problems in other countries are pushing wealthy families to buy in Miami, often as their primary home, not just a vacation spot. That matches what Giuseppe Cipriani, a family member of the hospitality brand behind the project, said about the building's design. "It is about creating a home where the way you live is the way we would live," he said.
The Cipriani name itself carries decades of history - the family opened its first bar in Venice in 1931, nearly a century ago. Now that hospitality brand is leaning into residential living, and Miami is the first stop.
The wave of corporate relocations to Miami has accelerated in recent years, with firms like Citadel moving their headquarters from Chicago and Amazon expanding its presence in the city. This influx of high-income professionals has driven demand for luxury housing, making projects like Cipriani Residences a bellwether for the broader local economy.
So a fancy tower sold fast. Why should anyone outside that price range care?
The bottom line: The Cipriani Residences sellout is not just a real estate headline. It is a signal about where wealthy people and their money are moving. When top executives from major companies relocate, they bring their jobs, their spending, and their tax dollars with them. Cities like Miami have seen a wave of such moves over the past few years, and this project suggests the trend has not slowed down.
For anyone watching real estate markets, Miami has become a standout. It is drawing buyers who might have once chosen New York, San Francisco, or even London. The business-friendly environment and the influx of corporate headquarters - from firms like Citadel and Amazon - create demand that reaches beyond luxury condos. It flows into local businesses, housing markets, and even stocks tied to Florida's growth.
No one knows whether Miami's hot streak will last forever, but right now the numbers are hard to ignore. A tower that is 80% sold before it is even built tells a story about confidence - the kind of confidence that tends to ripple through an entire city's economy.
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