Fort Lauderdale - WATERFRONT SMART MONEY

WATERFRONT SMART MONEY

Fort Lauderdale + Pompano Beach

CRAIG BUJNOWSKI | 617-784-7504 | @craigbuj

Updated September 26, 2026

3-BULLET SMART MONEY SUMMARY

VALUE - Under $5M remains the hunting ground. Fort Lauderdale ocean-access sales over the March–August period rose 30% year over year to 192 closings, while median price increased 18% to $2.775M. Yet individual properties are still showing meaningful reductions and relisting behavior.  

OPPORTUNITY - Water quality is creating bigger disparities than $/SF. The current screen ranges from 60’ no-fixed-bridge waterfront at $1.49M to ~220’ point-lot waterfront at $4.25M. That makes Water Basis more useful than simply comparing house size.  

WATCH - This isn’t a broad distress trade. A September 19 direct-ocean-access snapshot showed 129 active listings and 17 pending against 88 sales during the prior 180 days. I want property-specific seller fatigue, not a bet on the entire waterfront market collapsing.  

 

🟩 UNDER $2M

ENTRY / HIDDEN VALUE — BUY THE ACCESS

This tier is about getting real boating utility at the lowest possible basis.

Rank	Idea	Ask	Investment angle	Call
1	2412 Sugarloaf Ln	$1.490M	60’ / no fixed / new seawall	🔥 UNDERWRITE
2	3200 NE 59th St	$1.999977M	The Landings / 8 homes from ICW	🔥 LOCATION
3	Pompano no-fixed-bridge hunt	<$2M	Target 75’+ water	🔎 HUNT
4	Lauderdale Isles fixer hunt	<$1.75M	House secondary to water	🔎 HUNT

🥇 2412 SUGARLOAF LN

$1.490M | 60’ waterfront | no fixed bridges | direct ocean access

It also has a brand-new seawall, 25’ dock and renovated four-bedroom house.  

Water Basis™: ~$24,833/WF ft
Water Per $1M™: 40.3 feet

That’s a compelling entry basis for unrestricted Fort Lauderdale waterfront.

🥈 3200 NE 59TH ST

$1,999,977 | 2,163 SF | The Landings

The listing describes it as eight houses from the Intracoastal, no fixed bridges, with impact windows/doors, newer A/C and whole-house generator.  

Investment call: I prefer Sugarloaf for raw basis; I prefer NE 59th for location and proximity to the Intracoastal.

TIER CALL

BUY THE ACCESS — NOT JUST THE WATER VIEW.

 

🟢 $2M–$5M

VALUE / ALPHA — BUY THE MISPRICING

This is still the tier where I’d spend the most research time.

Rank	Property	Ask	Key attribute	Call
1	2587 SW 30th Ave	$2.650M	100’ deepwater/no fixed	🔥 ALPHA
2	2878 NE 26th St	$3.495M	100’ + seller movement	🔥 NEGOTIATE
3	2761 SE 9th St	$4.250M	~220’ point lot	🔥 WATER KING
4	325 Coconut Isle	$2.950M	Las Olas + 10.5% cut	🟢 LOCATION
5	420 Lido Dr	$4.600M	100’ redevelopment	🟡 LAND

🥇 2587 SW 30TH AVE

This is my favorite new value screen.

$2.650M | 100’ waterfront | 100’ private dock

Deep water. Wide canal. No fixed bridges. No HOA. The seller cut the property from $2.725M to $2.650M on September 23.  

WATER BASIS™

$26,500 / WF FT

WATER PER $1M™

37.7 FEET

At $2.65M, I’m getting the renovated house essentially wrapped around an unusually strong water asset.

Call: UNDERWRITE NOW.

 

🥈 2878 NE 26TH ST — CORAL RIDGE

$3.495M

The listing was previously at $3.9M, came to $3.69M in April, fell to $3.495M in June, was removed September 6 and relisted September 9 at the same price. It also last sold for $3.5M in December 2022.  

That is precisely the listing behavior I want in Seller Capitulation Watch™.

My existing analytical zone remains approximately:

$3.20M–$3.35M

That’s an underwriting range, not a prediction of seller acceptance.

 

🥉 2761 SE 9TH ST — POMPANO

$4.250M | 3,503 SF

Approximately:

220’ waterfront
180’ dockage
16,000-lb lift
2 Jet Ski lifts
Point lot
No fixed bridges  

WATER BASIS™

~$19,318/WF FT

WATER PER $1M™

~51.8 FEET

That’s the strongest raw water-per-dollar number among today’s major candidates.

 

325 COCONUT ISLE — LAS OLAS

$2.950M | 2,450 SF | 50’ waterfront

No fixed bridges and easy ocean access. Current data show roughly a 10.5% cumulative reduction, and nearby recent sales include 449 Bontona at $2.85M.  

This isn’t the water-per-dollar winner.

It’s the Las Olas location arbitrage.

 

420 LIDO DR — LAS OLAS

$4.600M | 100’ waterfront

The house is only 2,370 SF, but that’s almost beside the point. The listing itself markets the property as a renovation or redevelopment opportunity.  

TIER CALL

BUY THE MISPRICING.

 

🔵 $5M–$10M

PREMIUM / TURNKEY — BUY THE QUALITY

At this level I don’t want to pay $2M extra for countertops.

I want water + street + dockage + house quality.

Rank	Property	Ask	Thesis	Call
1	2601 Delmar Pl	$6.250M	Seven Isles / 6,019 SF	🔥 VALUE
2	334 Isle of Capri	$5.790M	Las Olas + price movement	🔥 NEGOTIATE
3	609 Poinciana Dr	$5.395M	Newer Idlewyld product	🟢 QUALITY
4	2406 Barcelona Dr	$5.495M	5,377 SF / prior cut	🟢 BASIS

Current Las Olas/Isles inventory confirms 2601 Delmar at $6.25M, 334 Isle of Capri at $5.79M, 2406 Barcelona at $5.495M and 609 Poinciana at $5.395M.  

🥇 2601 DELMAR — SEVEN ISLES

$6.250M | 6,019 SF

~$1,038/SF

This is the kind of premium-tier property I prefer to investigate:

Large house + Seven Isles + serious boating location

rather than paying $8M simply because a house photographs well.

🥈 334 ISLE OF CAPRI

$5.790M | 3,298 SF

Current data show roughly a 3.3% reduction.  

I’d attack this one through seller movement + water + Las Olas scarcity, not $/SF.

TIER CALL

BUY QUALITY — NOT COSMETIC LUXURY.

 

🟣 $10M+

TROPHY / ULTRA-LUXURY — BUY THE IRREPLACEABLE

Rank	Property	Ask	Why it matters	Call
1	2593 SE 8th St	$14.995M	270’+ point-lot water	🔥 WATER
2	2437 Delmar Pl	$10.250M	103’ dock / Seven Isles	🔥 CAPITULATION
3	500 Isle of Capri	~$10.9M*	Major Las Olas waterfront	🟢 UNDERWRITE
4	Prime new Las Olas	$15M+	Replacement-cost trade	🟡 SELECTIVE
5	Harbor Beach trophy	$20M+	True scarcity only	🔵 TROPHY

 

🥇 2593 SE 8TH — POMPANO

This remains the trophy asset that fascinates me most.

$14.995M

10,505 SF

270’+ waterfront

Point lot at Intracoastal/Lake Santa Barbara

No fixed bridges

Multiple-vessel dockage

Fully renovated

Five-car garage  

WATER BASIS™

~$55,500/WF FT

You are buying an enormous amount of genuinely scarce water.

 

🥈 2437 DELMAR — SEVEN ISLES

This one just became even more interesting from a Seller Capitulation™ perspective.

CURRENT: $10.250M

ORIGINAL 2025 ASK: $12.495M

2022 SALE: $11.750M

7,393 SF

103’ concrete dock

Guard-gated Seven Isles

Fully furnished  

That’s a current ask approximately:

$1.5M BELOW ITS 2022 SALE

and about:

$2.245M BELOW ITS 2025 ASK

That doesn’t automatically mean it’s cheap—but it absolutely earns an underwriting slot.

TIER CALL

BUY THE IRREPLACEABLE — AND MAKE TROPHY SELLERS COMPETE FOR YOUR MONEY.

 

🚨 SELLER CAPITULATION WATCH™

🔥 2437 Delmar — HIGH: $12.495M initial 2025 ask → $10.25M current; current ask below its $11.75M 2022 sale.  

🔥 2878 NE 26th — HIGH: prior $3.9M exposure → $3.495M, removal and relisting.  

🟢 325 Coconut — HIGHER: approximately 10.5% reduction.  

🟢 2587 SW 30th — RISING: $2.725M → $2.65M September 23.  

🟡 334 Isle of Capri — WATCH: roughly 3.3% reduction.  

 

🌊 WATER PER $1 MILLION™

Property	Ask	Raw WF	WF per $1M
2761 SE 9th	$4.25M	~220’	51.8’
2412 Sugarloaf	$1.49M	60’	40.3’
2587 SW 30th	$2.65M	100’	37.7’
2878 NE 26th	$3.495M	~100’	28.6’
2593 SE 8th	$14.995M	270’+	18.0’+

Important: this is only the first screen. A foot of point-lot Intracoastal water isn’t economically equivalent to a foot of narrow canal frontage. Depth, inlet distance, canal geometry, dockage, seawall, wake and neighborhood all have to be layered in.

 

🏆 TOP 5 OVERALL TO UNDERWRITE

1. 2587 SW 30TH — $2.65M

100’ + deep water + no fixed bridges + seller movement.

2. 2878 NE 26TH — $3.495M

100’ Coral Ridge water + relisting behavior + comp-driven negotiation opportunity.

3. 2761 SE 9TH — $4.25M

~220’ point-lot waterfront makes Pompano impossible to ignore.

4. 2412 SUGARLOAF — $1.49M

The Under-$2M tier finally has a legitimate unrestricted-water candidate.

5. 2437 DELMAR — $10.25M

Trophy candidate where current ask is below its 2022 sale price.  

 

📊 MARKET SIGNAL

Fort Lauderdale ocean-access inventory is not screaming broad distress. One BeachesMLS-based August report showed 191 active listings, 6.8 months of supply and 192 trailing-six-month sales versus 147 in the comparable 2025 period. Median sale price was $2.775M and median DOM fell from 66 to 58.  

A broader September 25 waterfront screen showed 240 active + pending waterfront single-family listings, a $4.1M median ask and $1,118 median asking $/SF.  

Translation:

DON’T WAIT FOR THE ENTIRE MARKET TO CRACK.

HUNT INDIVIDUAL SELLERS AND INDIVIDUAL WATER ASSETS.

 

🏗️ REPLACEMENT-COST SIGNAL

The roughly $51M Sunrise Intracoastal contract remains important. The property has approximately 145’ of waterfront and ~15,000 SF; the developer reportedly bought the lot for $5.5M and invested more than $35M in construction. It had been listed for $55M, with closing expected in January 2027.  

That’s not a comp for ordinary canal homes.

It’s evidence of how high the replacement-cost ceiling can become for truly exceptional new waterfront product.

 

⚔️ THE FOUR-TIER TRADE

Capital	Strategy	What I’m buying
Under $2M	BUY THE ACCESS	Real boating utility
$2M–$5M	BUY THE MISPRICING	Great water + imperfect pricing
$5M–$10M	BUY THE QUALITY	Water + location + finished house
$10M+	BUY THE IRREPLACEABLE	Scarcity that can’t be recreated

WATERFRONT SMART MONEY™ THESIS

BUY THE WATER.
BUY THE LAND.
BUY SELLER FATIGUE.
RENOVATE THE HOUSE.
MAKE FORT LAUDERDALE EARN ITS PREMIUM.
USE POMPANO FOR BOATING ARBITRAGE.
DON’T PAY TOMORROW’S VALUE TODAY.

THE HOUSE AGES. THE WATER GETS SCARCER.

Buy the best water at the lowest defensible basis.

 

LOOKING FOR THE BEST WATERFRONT VALUE?

Send me your budget. I’ll show you what I’d buy — and what I’d pay.

CRAIG BUJNOWSKI | 617-784-7504 | @craigbuj