Acqualina Ocean Residences, Sunny Isles Beach: What Buyers Should Check

Acqualina Ocean Residences is the original Acqualina tower at 17875 Collins Avenue in Sunny Isles Beach, completed in 2006 — the building that turned this stretch of Collins from motel row into South Florida's luxury beachfront. It is a 52-story Mediterranean tower with 188 residences and a 97-room ultra-luxury resort hotel inside the same building, on 4.5 oceanfront acres with 400 feet of private beach. Do not confuse it with the other Acqualina towers: the Mansions at Acqualina (17749, completed 2015) and the Estates at Acqualina (17901 and 17975, completed 2022 and 2023) are separate buildings by the same developer, the Trump Group of Jules and Eddie Trump — not related to Donald Trump. The residences here are all flow-through, from about 2,185 square feet, and owners live in them 365 days a year or as little as 16 weeks a year, with the resort's Five-Diamond service — room service, housekeeping, beach attendants, a 20,000-square-foot ESPA spa — available either way. Buying here means buying into a working resort as much as a condominium, and the resort arrangement is part of the purchase.

The facts

• Address: 17875 Collins Avenue, Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160 (one directory lists 17885 in error)
• Completed: 2006 (some directories say 2005)
• Stories: 52 (several sources say 51)
• Residences: 188 (county-based counts list 244 residential folios at the address)
• Hotel: 97-room ultra-luxury boutique resort in the same tower; opened under Rosewood Hotels & Resorts management, which ended in 2007 — Acqualina has run the resort under its own brand since
• Developer: The Trump Group (Jules and Eddie Trump — not related to Donald Trump)
• Architect: Cohen, Freedman, Encinosa & Associates (one source credits Robert Swedroe)
• Unit mix: 2 to 6 bedrooms (the resort's own site describes 3 to 5 bedrooms); all flow-through residences
• Unit sizes: about 2,185 to over 13,000 sq ft
• Waterfront: oceanfront, direct beach access, 4.5-acre site with 400 linear feet of private beach

Amenities and day-to-day living

The resort is the amenity program: a 20,000-square-foot oceanfront ESPA spa, three oceanfront swimming pools including an adults-only tranquility pool, the Il Mulino New York restaurant and Costa Grill, a private beach club with beach service, a fitness center, and the AcquaMarine children's program, with 24-hour concierge and valet, room service, housekeeping, babysitting, pet walking, and tailoring. Residences are reached by private elevators in most lines, with floor-to-ceiling windows and ocean, Intracoastal, and downtown views from the flow-through plans. The rental market is active for a building this size: 14 residences were listed for sale and 7 for rent in November 2026, with rentals from about $10,000 a month and a current three-bedroom listing at $19,500 a month.

What to check before you buy

• Monthly cost, honestly. No verified building-wide dues figure was found for this building. Homes.com puts the monthly HOA at about $4,135, with a range of about $3,638 to $7,182 across current listings; one current three-bedroom listing (unit 3404, 2,031 sq ft) shows $4,342 a month. Get the exact figure for the residence you are considering, including what the dues cover and what resort services are billed separately, and use the monthly-cost worksheet in the Buyer's Guide, not just the mortgage payment.
• The resort arrangement — read the documents, not the listing. The resort's own site says owners can live in a residence 365 days a year or as little as 16 weeks a year, and current rental listings describe a 6-month minimum lease. Confirm how the residence program works for the exact unit — whether it sits in a hotel rental pool, what the revenue split and owner-use terms are, and what happens to furnishings and bookings when the unit is rented.
• Milestone inspection. Florida milestone inspection rules generally apply at 30 years, or 25 years within 3 miles of the coast. This is an oceanfront building completed in 2006, so its first milestone inspection falls in the early 2030s — around 2031 on the 25-year coastal rule — but confirm the building's milestone and SIRS status with the association rather than relying on a listing.
• Reserves and assessments. Ask what reserves are funded, what assessments are planned or already approved, and where the building stands on its Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS). Under Florida's SIRS rules, reserves for SIRS items are no longer waivable — but confirm this building's position with its association. In a 20-year-old building, reserve funding and assessment history matter most.
• Owner-occupancy ratio. Lenders check this ratio before approving a mortgage, so confirm the current figure with the association — a building heavy on rentals can block financing. No verified owner-occupancy figure was found for Acqualina Ocean Residences.
• Rentals. A current rental listing states a 6-month minimum lease, and an older brokerage note also cites a 6-month minimum. Confirm the current leasing rules, rental caps, and association approval process with the association before you buy.
• Pets. Homes.com lists a pet size limit and breed restrictions for this building, but no details were verified in public sources. Confirm the current rules — including any size or breed limits — with the association before you buy if a pet is part of the plan.

Who this building suits

Acqualina Ocean Residences suits a buyer who wants the original Acqualina resort lifestyle — a large flow-through oceanfront residence with a full Five-Diamond hotel operation in the same tower, room service and housekeeping on call, and the option of living there part of the year. It is a poor fit for a buyer who wants a small residence, a low monthly bill, or a straightforward residential condo: nothing here is under about 2,185 square feet, the dues run with the resort service, and the residence program has rental terms that need reading before you sign. It is also a poor fit for anyone who will not check the milestone position — a 2006 oceanfront tower is five years from its first milestone cycle, and what the association has planned for it matters. If you are choosing between this and another tower, send Mike the buildings you are comparing and he will walk through the finances with you, building by building.

Next step

Get the free Sunny Isles Beach Buyer's Building Guide — the ten questions to ask before you sign, applied to the tower you are actually considering. Or book a call with Mike to walk through Acqualina Ocean Residences together.