Swire Properties sells Florida site to a venture between Kushner family and New York-listed Reit Aimco

Hong Kong developer agrees to sell the site to a venture between investment trust Aimco and Kushner Companies

Swire Properties still owns three sites in Miami, Florida, which can yield about 2.5 million sq ft of gross floor area

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Broward Crossing in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Photo: Handout

Published: 3:45pm, 20 Jan 2022Updated: 5:59pm, 20 Jan 2022

Hong Kong developer Swire Properties has sold a property site in Florida to a US venture partly owned by the family of Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former president Donald Trump, for a tidy profit.

The developer agreed this month to sell the site comprising three land parcels in downtown Fort Lauderdale for US$49 million to Aimco and Kushner Companies, according to the parties involved. Swire acquired them in 2006 and 2007 for more than US$14 million, according to past media reports.

Aimco is a New York-listed real estate investment trust with US$3.4 billion of assets under management, while Kushner Companies is a multifamily home builder which counted Jared as its former chief executive.

Donald Trump listens to his senior adviser Jared Kushner in the Oval Office in this September 2020 file picture. Photo: AFP

A Swire Properties spokesperson confirmed its US subsidiary completed a transaction this month to sell a site in Fort Lauderdale, without naming the buyers. The sale is part of its capital reallocation exercise to channel funds into other opportunities in Miami, the spokesperson added.

Swire Properties still owns three sites available for development in Miami, Florida, amounting to about 2.5 million sq ft of gross floor area, according to its latest annual report.

“This looks like a good deal for Swire. They would have had to sink years of additional investment into the site before starting to earn significant returns,” said Kashif Ansari, co-founder and group CEO of Juwai IQI, a property portal. “Now, they can pocket a tidy profit for assembling the site and seeing through the zoning changes that permit an exceptionally large development.”

An aerial view along Pompano Beach in Florida. Photo: TNS

Fort Lauderdale on the south-eastern coast of Florida is known for its beaches and boating canals. The new owners are developing the 204,000 sq ft site into a project called Broward Crossing on Broward Boulevard, according to company websites of Kushner and Aimco. Current zoning allows for 3 million sq ft of apartments and commercial space.