Ryan’s Rankings reviews several condo buildings along Biscayne Boulevard.
MATIAS J. OCNER
mocner@miamiherald.com
There are lots of factors to consider when buying or renting a condo in Miami.
And while the real estate agent showing you units will often highlight a building’s picturesque views or fancy gym, you may not know until you move in that your street floods or the pool is closed for renovations for the next year.
This is the kind of information Ryan Rea wants to make accessible to buyers and renters in Miami on his website Ryan’s Rankings, which launched on Monday. So far, he has reviewed 20 buildings in the downtown and Park West neighborhoods.
“There’s a lack of information around condo buildings beyond just, ‘How nice is the pool? And are the units big?’” Rea said. “I don’t think that information gets through to people a lot of time, because people aren’t incentivized to share it.”
Rea works in marketing and content generation for e-commerce companies, but he says he’s “obsessed” with information and has taken an interest in the Miami real estate market. And after living in a dozen buildings since he moved to Miami nearly a decade ago, he said he’s learned what to look for.
Over the years, Rea has developed a social media presence and a reputation as a source of information about Miami condo buildings. He says hundreds of people have reached out to him for advice about condo buildings and Miami neighborhoods. He offers them free, informal consulting services.
“People trust me, because I’m not affiliated with anyone,” Rea said. “No developer, no property manager, no realtor.”
But Rea said meeting with everyone who reached out to him was taking up a lot of time. That’s part of why he wanted to put all the information he’d amassed in one place that renters and buyers could easily access.
Rea’s information comes from his own research and what he hears from residents of buildings.
He said he will sometimes visit friends who live in a building to scope out the vibes, amenities and number of elevators. Sometimes he’ll simply walk into a building’s lobby to check it out. He said he also uses artificial intelligence to comb through the information about buildings available online.
Rea reviews building amenities, views and value, but he also shares information about elevator wait times, condo association fees and the feel of the surrounding neighborhood. In a section called “the tea,” he highlights the juicy details about buildings, like the current lawsuit against the Aston Martin Residences developer.
Under the heading “What’s Changing,” Rea notes considerations like whether a new building going up nearby will block views. Some of his reviews for older buildings include information about upcoming condo inspections and recertifications. The website also has a comparison feature, which allows users to see how buildings stack up against one another.
One of the top-rated buildings on his website is 900 Biscayne Bay, located on Museum Row. He says this building is one of the best values in the downtown area, but he notes that flooding, event traffic from Miami Heat games and 2008-era finishes are drawbacks for the luxury condo.
For buildings like the ultra-luxury Zaha Hadid-designed One Thousand Museum, Rea says buyers can expect an “aggressive” condo association that residents say issues fines for infractions like leaving packages in the hallway.
For one of his lower-rated buildings, The Crosby, Rea mentions that the building primarily attracts investors and Airbnb hosts. He also notes that The Crosby’s relatively few elevators mean residents can expect long wait times.
Rea said he hopes to expand to more neighborhoods soon. He said his next neighborhoods will likely be Edgewater and Brickell. Rea hopes to include a “resident intel” section soon with insights from people who live in the buildings he’s reviewing.
Ryan’s Rankings is a passion project for Rea, and he said he hasn’t yet decided how he’s going to make money with it. Right now, the website is free to access.
This story was originally published March 2, 2026 at 2:48 PM.
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Catherine Odom covers real estate for the Miami Herald. She previously interned on the Herald’s government team and has worked as a journalist in Germany and Armenia. She is a graduate of Northwestern University.