Miami mansion market sizzles, with no end in sight

“The spigot from Latin America has definitely slowed,” said Jay Parker, CEO of Florida Brokerage for Elliman. “We’ve seen a retraction in that market.”

But a surge in demand from other overseas buyers and from New Yorkers—especially those in the financial community—has more than made up the difference, Parker said.

The New York contingent is no longer retirees flocking to Florida but younger, wealthy families looking for a better-quality and lower-cost lifestyle, according to Parker. Technology has also allowed more traders and bankers to work remotely.

“In our market, New York is the new Latin America,” he said.

Jonathan Miller of Miller Samuel said Miami is becoming an alternative to the Hamptons, the ultraluxury resort area on New York’s Long Island.

“I’ve never seen such a correlation between the two markets as I’m seeing now,” he said. Given the Long Island traffic, “the commute time to Miami and the Hamptons [from New York] is about the same.”

Brokers, however, admit that the Miami price increases will likely slow, if only because they have soared so dramatically since 2009.

For example, at the Apogee South Beach, one of Miami’s most expensive towers, Unit 1101, a 4,154-square-footer with prime views, went for $4.8 million in 2009. Elliman sold it recently for twice that amount.

Jorge Uribe, who is with One Sotheby’s International in Miami, noted a Coral Gables home that recently sold for $9.8 million. While properties in that area have typically gone for $1,000 a square-foot, this sale hit about $1,500.

“The demand is just really hot still,” Uribe said. “Especially for the bigger properties.”

—By CNBC’s Robert Frank. Follow him on Twitter @robtfrank

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