Turkish developer Okan Group has received approval to raise EB-5 funds for its Okan Tower project in downtown Miami, The Real Deal has learned. This move allows foreign investors to help finance the Hilton-branded condo-hotel tower.
Okan Tower, when finished, will feature a 316-room Hilton hotel, 236 condo-hotel units managed by Hilton, 163 condominiums, over 80,000 square feet of amenities, and 60,000 square feet of office space. The building was designed by Behar Font & Partners and marks Okan’s first development in the United States.
The high-rise is under construction at 555 North Miami Avenue and has reached the 31st floor. Completion is expected by the end of 2027, according to Michael Sadov, the new sales director. Edgardo Defortuna’s Fortune Development Sales is handling sales for the project.
Sadov stated that Okan Group will release EB-5 investor slots in groups of 30 but did not disclose how much they plan to raise through this program. The EB-5 visa program requires a minimum investment of $1.05 million and offers green cards to investors and their immediate families if their investment leads to at least ten full-time jobs for U.S. workers.
So far, Okan has self-funded the construction. The developer paused work on the tower in 2020 due to the pandemic but restarted sales efforts in 2021. An affiliate of Okan purchased the nearly one-acre site for $18.1 million in 2017. The area around Okan Tower includes other new projects such as Crosby at Miami Worldcenter and Melo Group’s Downtown 6th.
Sadov took over as sales director in June and said that more than sixty percent of units have been presold. Prices start at $750,000 for a condo-hotel studio and go up to $3.6 million for a condominium unit, excluding penthouses.
Although preconstruction condo sales have slowed across South Florida recently, Sadov reported increased interest in recent weeks.
The sales team has been marketing Okan Tower internationally in countries like Colombia, Mexico, Brazil—where most foreign buyers are based—and Turkey.
Sadov also noted that not all EB-5 investors buy units in the building.
A growing number of developers are using EB-5 funding for projects with hospitality elements because these developments tend to create more jobs than standard residential towers. For example, Fortune International Group recently applied for EB-5 status for its Ora by Casa Tua condo-hotel planned in Brickell and previously raised EB-5 funds for Nexo Residences—a short-term rental-friendly project developed with Blue Road.
The federal EB-5 program began in 1990 as a way to attract foreign capital through job creation tied to real estate development projects across the country. Meanwhile, changes may be coming: recent reports note that federal officials have been working on alternative visa options such as a proposed $5 million “gold card” visa program targeting wealthy foreigners seeking U.S. citizenship.
