Is seller financing common in Miami?

It is a minority but not rare: on 7 October 2026, 210 active residential listings in Miami-Dade and Broward offered it on the MLS, 145 of them condos at a median asking price of $265,000. Most are older, lower-priced units that have been on the market for months.

What are typical seller financing terms in Florida?

Where listings state them: about 30 percent down (median of 36 listings), an interest rate near 5 percent (median of 16, range 3 to 10) and a balloon after five years (4 of 6), with payments amortized over 30 years. Everything is negotiable and is written by an attorney into the note.

Can I buy a short-term rental condo with seller financing?

Yes, where a seller offers it and the building allows nightly rental. The financing does not change the rental rule, so we read the building's declaration first; 18 of the 145 seller-financed condos listed on 7 October 2026 mention short-term rental, and Property Management Brickell can run the unit after closing.

Seller Financing on a Miami Condo: Real Terms

Seller financing on a Miami condo: what sellers actually offer

On 7 October 2026, 210 active residential listings in Miami-Dade and Broward offered seller financing on the MLS, 145 of them condos at a median asking price of $265,000; where the terms are written, the usual ask is 30 percent down, a rate near 5 percent and a balloon after five years. It is a real way to buy without a bank, and it sits mostly on older, cheaper stock that has been on the market a while: a median 120 days for those condos, which is also your negotiating room on the price.

Source: Bridge Data Output (SEFMLS), active Residential listings in Miami-Dade and Broward counties whose public remarks offer seller or owner financing, read 7 October 2026. Two listings that say "no seller financing" are excluded. Terms are the listing agents' own words, counted only where a number is written.

210 listings, and the terms they write

Most listings say only "seller financing available". The terms below come from the minority that put a number on it, so read them as the opening ask, not a market rate.

What	Value	Based on
Active listings offering seller financing	210	145 condos, 48 houses, 10 townhouses, 6 co-ops, 1 mobile home; 99 in Miami-Dade, 111 in Broward
Condo median asking price	$265,000	145 condos; middle half from $175,000 to $447,000, a median $287 a foot
House median asking price	$1,047,450	48 single-family houses
Down payment asked	30%	median of 36 listings that state it; 30 percent in 13, 25 percent in 8
Interest rate offered	5.0%	median of 16 listings that state it, from 3 to 10 percent
Balloon	5 years	4 of the 6 listings that state one
Condo median days on market	120	the financing is often offered once a unit has sat
Condos whose remarks mention short-term or vacation rental	18	including units at The Crosby, 501 First, Hyde Beach Hollywood and Sian Ocean Residences; a remark is not a rental rule

Read 7 October 2026. Listings change daily; ask us for today's list.

The seller is the bank, for a few years

You pay the down payment at closing and sign a promissory note and a mortgage in the seller's favour, recorded with the County like any bank mortgage. Payments are usually calculated over 30 years so they stay low, and the balance falls due at the balloon, typically year five, by which time you refinance with a bank or sell. The closing runs through a title company, with title insurance, exactly like a cash or bank purchase.

A worked example on a $500,000 condo: 30 percent down is $150,000; $350,000 at 5 percent over 30 years is $1,879 a month, $22,547 a year; after five years about $321,000 is still owed and due. At closing Florida charges documentary stamp tax on the note ($0.35 per $100, about $1,225 here) and intangible tax on the mortgage (0.2 percent, about $700).

Three checks before signing. The seller must own the unit free and clear, or have the lender's written consent, because a mortgage with a due-on-sale clause can be called when the unit changes hands. The note's terms (rate, balloon, prepayment, late fees, what happens on default) are drafted by a Florida real estate attorney, not copied from a listing remark. And the condo association's approval still applies, as it would to any buyer.

The financing does not change the rental rule

Whether a unit can rent by the night is set by the city, the zoning and the building's declaration, never by how you pay for it. 18 of the 145 seller-financed condos mention short-term rental in their remarks; that is the seller's claim, and we read the declaration before recommending any of them. Where nightly rental is not allowed, the same unit can still work as a 30-day rental.

BlueBay Brokers matches seller-financed listings against buildings whose rule we have read, negotiates the price and the note together, and Property Management Brickell, our sister company, runs the unit afterwards. The simulator models the same unit cash and seller-financed side by side, so the debt service is set against revenue you can check, not a market median.

Seller financing on a Miami condo: what sellers actually offer

210 listings, and the terms they write

The seller is the bank, for a few years

The financing does not change the rental rule

Seller-financed listings, in buildings you can rent

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