Micro-mansions appear to be poised to take the lead in the new trend for small homes. Following on from micro-apartments and tiny houses which took up as little as 400 square feet, this latest development looks at moving the trend into the luxury end of the market.
Florida-based developer, Frank McKinley, is now gambling on the success of his new micro-mansion – this is a luxurious home covering 4,042 square feet and is currently under construction at the coastal community of Ocean Ride, just 30 minutes from Palm Beach.
The developer is aiming the property at those who want a private, manageable space but can afford a price tag of around $10million and is hoping that the trend for smaller units will extend to Palm Beach.
What’s in a Micro-Mansion?
The ‘micro-mansion’ should be completed at the end of 2019 and comprises 3 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms, a floating sundeck between two pools and a master bedroom with an outdoor shower on the second floor.
The property, located just 345 feet from the ocean, also boasts antique wood flooring taken from a 16th century galleon and sea-glass kitchen counters. It is hoped that this unique and modern design will attract the sort of high value buyer who would often spend money on homes with bedrooms bigger than this entire house.
In February, there were 66 homes available to purchase in the area with a median sale price of $893,500. The Realtors Association of the Palm Beaches said that this represents at 33.9% fall in prices from last year, when the median price was $1.35million.
However, there is no price for the completed micro-mansion as yet, however, the site itself set the developer back a cool $350,000, so he is likely to be looking at a price somewhere in between $4-$10million.
There has certainly been a lot of interest in micro-apartments and small homes in general especially in larger cities and their prices continue to increase.
There are some who remain skeptical: According to Stockton Williams, the executive director of the ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing, 4,000 square feet is too large an area to be considered as a micro-home and in reality, the property is just a standard luxury home.
He does concede that many people who are not looking for a huge home would buy the property to take advantage of the location.
In 2015 Miami ranked as the 6th most important city globally for those with a high net worth. The only US city beating it was New York City. Miami is popular for those looking to spend on luxury – all it will take is one buyer to put the new micro-mansion phenomenon on the map.
