Prodigy Arm to Line Up Condo Buys

NEW YORK CITY-Rodrigo Nino, founder and president at Prodigy International, the international brokerage that markets individual condominium units for developers, has started a new company called Prodigy Network. The new entity, headquartered here, will instead represent buyers and investors in their search for new residential condo properties.

So far, Nino’s new firm has around $100 million in international dollars to go shopping for properties on the East Coast, primarily Miami and New York. The plan is for Prodigy Network to eventually buy around $500 million in properties.

Nino tells GlobeSt.com he’s looking for East Coast properties that range from $350,000 to $3 million per condo unit. He says his investors are mostly from Latin America, Asia and Europe and that the group is focused only on existing, standing and finished inventory.

“I don’t want to touch anything that is based on local demand,” Nino says noting “the more global the destination,” the better it is for his investors.

Of the wide price range ” it doesn’t mean we’re going to be analyzing properties on Brickel Avenue in Miami for $350,000 to $3 million,” he says. “ In that particular location, we’re only interested in owning properties that are in the lower end of that range,” he says although he says, Miami is bouncing back.

Nino says Prodigy needs to see what a property looks like, understanding that now, there’s a real asset, there’s a real property as collateral for his investment. “The property needs to make sense,” says Nino, noting the company is not looking for property that’s commodotized, but instead property that’s unique in value.

Nino stresses that “the real news is that there is an important interest and appetite from a foreign perspective for properties in the United States because the prices are making sense, and you can acquire standing inventory at a discount,” he says. He adds that he and his investors have faith that New York and Miami are both in store for turnarounds.

“There’s an incredible amount of activity in Miami, sales are spiking back to new highs, obviously for fractured condo projects and distressed properties, ” Nino says. And he thinks New York City is not far behind. “ As we enter summer, New York is almost ready, and the prices are already making sense, ” he says adding that he thinks “ right after Miami, New York will follow this trend.

Of his strategy, he says, “the premise is simple: buy cheap to sell expensive later.”