MIAMI BEACH
Renting in
Sunset Harbour
Sunset Harbour is the pocket of Miami Beach locals keep to themselves: bayfront, walkable, and built around a handful of streets you can live on without a car.
What renting in Sunset Harbour is actually like
A small bayfront neighborhood west of Alton Road, roughly between 18th and 20th. The density is low, the streets are quiet, and the restaurants are the kind people go to twice a week rather than once a year.
The rental stock is a mix of mid-rise bayfront buildings and smaller properties on the side streets. There is no oceanfront here, which is exactly why the value proposition differs from Collins.
What people are really renting here is the walk, the food and the fitness. Barry’s, Sol Yoga, Sunset Padel and [solidcore] are all within a few blocks, and so are Lucali and Bey Bey. You can do a whole day here without moving a car, which is rare on the Beach.
Six months is the floor
Almost every building in Sunset Harbour carries a minimum lease of six months, and the city separately restricts rentals shorter than six months and a day across much of Miami Beach. Those are two different rules and the building’s own rule is usually the one that binds.
If you want a few weeks, you want a hotel. No amount of searching produces a one month rental in most of these buildings.
A short list of Miami Beach buildings does permit shorter stays. That list is here.
Season or annual
More annual than most of Miami Beach. The people who rent here tend to be living in Miami rather than wintering, so twelve month leases are the norm and the market behaves conventionally.
That makes it one of the easier places on the Beach to rent year-round, and one of the harder places to find something seasonal.
What people get wrong
Renting into a building with amenities under construction
This is the one nobody thinks to ask about. You sign a year for the pool, the gym and the service, then find the building is mid-project and all of it is closed for eight months of your lease. Plenty of buildings are doing structural and amenity work right now. Ask what is under way and when it finishes, in writing, before you sign.
Expecting ocean
This is the bay side. Sunset rather than sunrise, calmer water, and a different price for comparable space.
Not checking parking
It is tight here, and whether a unit comes with a dedicated space matters more than it would in a tower with a garage.
Assuming residential means quiet
The restaurant strip is genuinely busy in the evenings. See the specific block at the hour you would actually be there.
What it costs you to use me
Nothing. In most Miami rentals the landlord pays the agent, and I only share listings where that is the case. Nothing I send you carries a fee to you, and you do not need to ask about it or check for it. More on how that works.
Common questions
What is Sunset Harbour known for?
Walkability, restaurants and fitness. Barry’s, Sol Yoga, Sunset Padel and [solidcore] are within a few blocks, as are Lucali and Bey Bey. It is the part of Miami Beach where you can do a whole day without moving a car.
Is Sunset Harbour on the ocean?
No, it is on the bay side, west of Alton Road. Sunset rather than sunrise, calmer water, and different pricing for comparable space.
Is there a minimum lease?
Almost always six months. Miami Beach restricts rentals shorter than six months and a day across much of the city, and most condo associations set their own minimum on top of that. The building’s rule is usually the one that binds.
Are there hidden fees when renting a unit in Miami?
There should not be. In most Miami rentals the landlord pays the agent, and I only share listings where that is the case, so nothing I send you carries a fee to you. Separately, expect an association application fee, which is normal and paid to the building rather than to an agent.
How long does association approval take?
Anywhere from a few days to a few weeks depending on the building. Build it into your timing rather than assuming you can move in the week you sign.
Can I rent furnished?
Often yes, particularly on seasonal terms. Short-term inventory here is usually turnkey. For annual leases it varies by unit, so say up front if furnished matters.
Current Sunset Harbour rentals
About Jack
Jack Mintz is a real estate agent with Compass, based at 1212 Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. He works across Miami Beach, Brickell, Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Bal Harbour and Edgewater.
Most of what he does early with a renter is work out what is actually available and what is not, which saves more time than touring does.
Looking in Sunset Harbour?
Tell me the timing, the budget and whether you need furnished. I will tell you what is realistic and what is not.
Sunset Harbour condos for sale · Renting in South of Fifth · Renting in Miami