By Nadia Bouzid

So consider this; You are thinking about dropping 1.5 million in a condo in Miami. High-Rise, Bay views, top amenities, the works… Sounds ideal right? What could go wrong?

In my case, I live in a 29th floor in a Downtown Miami condo. Everything seems to be just perfect; Great location, amazing views, good amenities, until I have to leave my crib. I first pack up my handbag, fill up my thermos with water (lets stop buying plastic bottles; subscribe to https://www.nestlepurelifedelivery.com/ so worth it), grab a snack, find keys and finally I’m out; now a regular day I have to wait 3 minutes, sometimes 5 for the elevator to arrive, plus driving 9 floors down the parking garage, which is extremely long. Average waiting times for an elevator should not exceed 1 minute, according to an elevator expert at KONE Elevators.

So why do I have to wait so long?

In my condo building there are 2 elevators serving 57 stories, with 4 apartments in each floor, excluding the parking levels.  Needless to say it’s a super active building where people come and go at all times of the day.

What happens when there’s a move-IN/OUT? Which seem to happen extremely often. They put one of the elevators out of service, so we are left with one serving the entire tower. Therefore, to go up or down one has to wait  “#$%&” minutes or more, and obviously the lift is going to be full, stopping in every floor. This is specially excruciating when I need to go up and use the restroom.

Well, I am no expert in this subject, but it seems to me there is a design flaw in this situation. How on earth can city officials allow developers to get away with such a flaw? Is there something fishy?

We tend to neglect the importance of elevators when making decisions on buying in a certain building, when in fact it’s a crucial element in the operation of any building, such that should not be taken lightly or for granted.

In recent projects, new buildings are offering a new elevator technology as a solution to park cars, claiming to be a super feature that is meant to make your life easier. While this feature may seem like an innovative and ideal selling point for potential buyers, you have to keep in mind that reality is somewhat different. Take Brickell House Condominium for example; the company who was awarded the elevator project for the parking garage in this “high-end” building in Brickell couldn’t stay afloat and filed for bankruptcy. OOPS!!! Big OOPS. As the various elevators in the parking garage were malfunctioning, people had to wait hours to get their vehicles, and the congestion to get their cars up to their respective parking spaces was unmanageable. As an alternate solution, the condo association had to find alternative parking spaces for tenants in nearby buildings. 

There are currently 91 units for sale in the building out of 374. And prices start at $335,000 for a 1/1.

How much do you think a unit like this can appreciate?

Stay tuned for more tips on things to consider when buying a condo.