The American dream: how much does it cost for a Brazilian to live in Miami?

By Renata Firpo

Mild temperatures, clean beaches, safe streets, and promises of life without major economic upheavals.

This recipe turned Miami into one of the favorite destinations for those trying to escape from here.

The phenomenon peaked between the end of the 90s and the beginning of the 2000s when statistics showed that over 10% of the real estate in Florida’s largest city began to be purchased by Brazilians – for permanent residency or as an investment.

The wave has suffered a great ebb, which does not mean interest has disappeared.

Whenever there is a change of guard at the Planalto Palace, many people start looking for information to try to follow this escape route, which is repeating itself now, with the return of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to power.

The consultations with real estate agents in Miami have increased in the last months, but the truth is that few Brazilians can carry out this intention.

The high dollar has become the main nightmare for those still considering the conquest of the American dream.

The devaluated real against the dollar hits middle-class people in particular, who give up on the prospect of a new life in the land of Uncle Sam when they start doing the currency conversion calculations.

If the idea is to buy a property compatible with the standard of living that a family in this income bracket enjoys in Brazil, the expense will hardly be lower than US$800,000 – the equivalent of about R$4 million.

For this amount, it is possible to buy a used two-bedroom apartment in Downtown Miami, Miami Beach, or Hollywood, areas preferred by Brazilians.

Renting such a property costs approximately US$5,000 per month, a prohibitive figure for many pockets.

Besides the unfavorable exchange rate, Brazilians now find Miami disconnected from the behavior of the real estate market in the United States.

While other regions have cheaper real estate because of high interest rates, which jumped from 4% to 7.5% a year, the result of a policy of the Biden administration to contain the advance of inflation, the city of Florida has continuously appreciated.

For now, it is a timid growth of 1.5% per month, but the tendency is for this rate to increase more from next year on.

One of the factors that explain the rise in prices in Miami is the preference of Americans for investments in the region, which today is called the new “silicon valley” due to many technology companies that have settled there, especially startups.

In parallel, the cost of maintaining real estate there has also grown.

After an accident in 2021 in the Surfside area, which left 98 dead, there was a major change in the municipal legislation to increase the level of security and discipline in the occupation.

This has dramatically increased the monthly cost of the apartments, with a 50% or more increase in the condominium fee.

And those who think that buying or renting a property gives them the right to reside in the United States are mistaken.

None of the residency visa options requires only the purchase or rental of a property.

To live legally in American lands, especially Miami, besides fulfilling the requirements that the government demands, it is necessary to have a high salary or a good portfolio of clients willing to pay for the service of the jobs offered to stay in the city.

According to the website Expatistan, a single person must fork out about US$4,600 monthly to live in Miami.

This means the city’s values are around 15% higher than those of the rest of the United States.

Of course, one has to consider that not everyone has the same needs, and these values can differ.

Unfavorable exchange rates, real estate valuation, and other expenses constitute the equation that keeps many Brazilians away from Miami.

In the case of the real estate market, according to Micael Machado, a Brazilian living in the city for over 20 years and founder of the Machado Kinjer Group, there are today two types of Brazilians doing business in Miami:

Those who already live in the city take advantage of the devaluation of the Real to sell their real estate assets and send the money to Brazil, and those who do not live in the United States buy real estate for investment or a second home.

This second group now buys high-luxury properties from US$2 million and up.

In the last few weeks, a Brazilian businessman was the protagonist of a huge transaction in the city.

Evando Neiva, one of the founders of the educational group Pitágoras, from Minas Gerais, which would originate Kroton and later Cogna, sold a mansion on the island of Key Biscayne for US$10 million.

There is no lack of buyers for this type of product in Miami.

For those with money to spare, the market has no limits.

In Sunny Isles Beach, the Estates at Acqualina development has the most expensive apartment for sale in Miami today: US$85 million (about 1,500 square feet with seven bedrooms).

With information from Veja

News Brazil, English news Brazil, Brazilian society, Miami real estate