Your Brickell
Mortgage Broker

A local broker who knows Brickell tower by tower

Brickell is Miami’s financial district and the densest high-rise condo market in Florida. From the original 1980s towers on Brickell Key to the new Brickell City Centre, SLS Lux, Echo Brickell, and Brickell Flatiron, the neighborhood has more glass-and-concrete vertical real estate per square mile than any other Miami zip code. The financing picture matches: heavy on condo, heavy on jumbo, heavy on DSCR and foreign-national, with mid-tier conventional viable in select older buildings. We close Brickell deals every week — from owner-occupants buying their first Miami pied-à-terre to international investors picking up DSCR-financed rentals at SLS, Echo, or 1010 Brickell. Didier Latortue (NMLS #1649918) personally reviews every Brickell file.

Loan programs available in Brickell

• Conventional — 3%–20% down, best rates with 700+ credit. Applicable on smaller Brickell condos under $806,500 (2026 Miami-Dade conforming limit) and in FHA-/Fannie-warrantable buildings. We screen warrantability building-by-building.
• FHA — 3.5% down, credit scores down to 580. Limited application in Brickell because most pricing exceeds FHA loan limits, but valid in select older FHA-approved buildings on Brickell Avenue and Brickell Bay Drive.
• VA — 0% down, no PMI. Strong fit for veteran buyers in VA-approved Brickell buildings. The VA-approved condo list in Brickell is narrower than the FHA list.
• Jumbo — the dominant program in Brickell. Loans above $806,500. Common at Brickell City Centre Reach & Rise, Echo Brickell, Brickell Flatiron, SLS Brickell, SLS Lux, Echo Aventura, Una Residences, Cassa Brickell, Atlas, Vita, Centrale, and the Brickell Key towers (Carbonell, Asia, Tequesta). Portfolio lenders we work with handle interest-only, asset-depletion, recent self-employment, and trust-funded buyers.
• Condo loans — the central product in Brickell. Building warrantability is the make-or-break factor. Newer construction (post-2010) generally finances cleanly under conventional or jumbo. Older 1980s-90s towers on Brickell Avenue may need non-warrantable portfolio products. We pull HOA financials, milestone-inspection status, and master insurance before you offer.
• DSCR and investor loans — Brickell is one of the top rental markets in Florida. Long-term and short-term rentals both work depending on building HOA rules. DSCR qualifies on projected rent rather than personal income — particularly common in condo-hotel buildings like SLS Lux and Reach/Rise.
• Foreign-national loans — Brickell has one of the highest foreign-buyer concentrations in the US. Latin American buyers (Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, Mexico) dominate. We have portfolio lenders that qualify foreign nationals without US credit history at competitive rates.
• HELOC and cash-out refinance — for tapping equity in your current Brickell condo. Brickell values have appreciated dramatically post-2019.

Brickell buildings and sub-neighborhoods we close in regularly

• Brickell Avenue corridor (33131) — the main financial-district strip. Heavy condo: 500 Brickell, 1010 Brickell, Echo Brickell, Brickell Flatiron, Brickell House, Vue, Vizcayne, EPIC, Wind, Mark on Brickell.
• Brickell City Centre (33131) — Reach Residences, Rise Residences, SLS Lux. Newer, walkable, mall-adjacent. Conventional + jumbo + DSCR.
• Brickell Key (33131) — private island within Brickell. Carbonell, Asia, Three Tequesta Point, Two Tequesta Point, Tequesta Point. Jumbo + condo + foreign-national.
• South Brickell / Brickell Bay Drive (33129) — older 1980s-90s towers. Bristol Tower, Imperial at Brickell, Yacht Club at Brickell. Mix of conventional + non-warrantable portfolio.
• Mary Brickell Village (33130) — walkable mid-block, lower-rise condos and townhouses. Conventional + FHA in approved buildings.
• SLS Brickell, SLS Lux, Reach, Rise, Echo Brickell, Echo Aventura — new-construction luxury towers. Jumbo + DSCR + foreign-national.
• Una Residences, Cassa Brickell, Atlas, Vita, Centrale, Solitair, Sabbia — smaller boutique luxury. Jumbo + portfolio.
• Brickell-adjacent: Mary Brickell Village, Coral Way edge, Edgewater overflow — lower price points. Conventional + FHA viable.

Brickell underwriting realities — what kills deals if you don’t catch them early

Three patterns dominate Brickell financing. First, building warrantability — the post-Surfside structural-integrity reserves rules have hit some older Brickell Avenue towers harder than the newer ones. Buildings classified as non-warrantable can only be financed through portfolio lenders, often at higher rates and with larger down payments. Second, foreign-national qualification — Brickell’s foreign-buyer demographic means many transactions involve income/asset documentation from outside the US. Big-bank lenders typically can’t handle this; portfolio lenders we work with do. Third, condo-hotel classification — some Brickell buildings (especially SLS Lux, Reach, Rise) have hotel-management agreements that reclassify them as condo-hotels for underwriting purposes, which sharply narrows the lender pool. We know which lender goes with which building.

Brickell-specific costs you should plan for

• Property tax — Miami-Dade County millage runs roughly 1.0%–1.3% of assessed value. Homestead exemption (file by March 1) drops $50,000 off taxable value — but only if Brickell is your primary residence (excludes many second-home and investor buyers).
• Hurricane and wind insurance — condo HO-6 policies typically $400–$1,500/yr on top of building master coverage. The master policy cost is rolled into your HOA fee, which is meaningful in some buildings.
• Flood insurance — most Brickell high-rise condos have flood insurance bundled into the master HOA policy, so individual flood premiums are often unnecessary. Verify per building.
• HOA / condo fees — vary dramatically. Older Brickell Avenue towers $600–$1,200/month. Mid-tier (Echo, 1010, Brickell Flatiron) $1,000–$2,000/month. Luxury (SLS Lux, Reach, Rise, Una) $1,800–$3,500/month. Hotel-residences can be $2,500–$5,000/month. All counts in DTI.
• Florida doc stamps + intangible tax — $0.35 per $100 of note + 0.2% intangible tax. Standard FL closing costs — meaningful at Brickell price points.

How to start

Fill out the form on this page or call (754) 224-5704. We’ll have a 15-minute conversation, run the numbers, and tell you exactly which loan programs you qualify for and what your real monthly payment looks like — including the building warrantability check and (for foreign nationals) what documentation you’ll need. Pre-approval is free, soft credit pull only, no obligation.

Turtur Home Loans NMLS #2836215 · Didier Latortue NMLS #1649918 — licensed Florida mortgage broker, serving Brickell, Brickell Key, downtown Miami, Edgewater, and all of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach County.