Private Railroad Fuels South Florida Boom

We underestimate how well private entrepreneurs can efficiently provide the infrastructure that consumers want to buy.

(p. B6) South Florida housing values are still rising even as home prices in much of the country are starting to come down. Values for homes located near the region’s expanding rapid transit rail system are appreciating even faster.

Brightline, the privately owned and operated rail service, opened stations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach about five years ago, and more recently opened two more in Aventura and Boca Raton. Last week, Brightline started selling tickets for a new stop in Orlando, slated to open toward the end of the summer.

While mass transit systems throughout the U.S. are suffering from decreased business as more people work from home, Brightline reported a 68% increase in ridership in March of 2023, compared with the same month last year.

The popularity of the rail line is spilling over to the residential real-estate market, enabling home sellers to command higher prices for proximity to the transportation system, according to an analysis by the real-estate data and analytics firm Green Street.

For the full story, see:

Deborah Acosta. “South Florida Train Juices Home Values.” The Wall Street Journal (Wednesday, May 24, 2023): B6.

(Note: the online version of the story has the date May 23, 2023, and has the title “The Biggest South Florida Housing Boom Is Near the Rail Stations.”)

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