The numbers are in and according to Stellar MLS, Gulf to Bay Sotheby’s International Realty represented the most buyers and sellers in total units sold and also recorded the largest volume of sales for 2020. The information was collected and reported by real estate data company Lalapoint, LLC from January 1st, 2020 through December 31st, 2020.
Sotheby’s International Realty is pleased to announce the release of its inaugural 2021 Luxury Outlook report which examines high-end residential markets across the globe in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The comprehensive report provides insight into the world’s top primary and secondary markets and the anticipated wealth trends that will drive discretionary investment in the coming months. The report reveals that global wealth is forecasted to grow and pandemic trends are expected to persist in the year ahead. With priorities shifting toward larger homes with special amenities, including “Zoom rooms,” multiple offices and workspaces, and an increased interest in sustainable homes with wellness and technology features, the Luxury Outlook highlights new spending habits and homebuying trends.
“As a leader in luxury real estate, it was important for us to analyze trends emerging from the most unparalleled year in modern history,” said Bradley Nelson, chief marketing officer for Sotheby’s International Realty. “The pandemic recalibrated interest in larger, greener properties, secondary cities, and geographies with favorable tax and emigration policies. These preferences are likely here to stay for the foreseeable future, and it was important for us to provide a resource to those looking to navigate the months ahead.”
Join us as we explore these market-shaping forces and more on luxuryoutlook.com.
In sharp contrast to the “slacker” stereotype that has defined their generation, millennials aren’t living in parents’ basements. They’re buying multimillion-dollar homes.
At 38%, millennials—adults born from 1981 to 1996—represent the largest share of home buyers in the U.S., according to a survey by the National Association of Realtors released last year. “They’re just as interested in owning a home. They just waited longer to buy their first one,” says Bradley Nelson, chief marketing officer of Sotheby’s International Realty.
Breaking from the notion of a “starter home” that older generations embraced, wealthy millennials, Nelson says, are going big.
“In the past, people bought a modest property, lived in it until starting a family, and then traded up to a larger property,” he says. “Millennials are finally coming out of the gate, and it’s not uncommon for the first purchase as a first time homebuyer to be a multimillion-dollar luxury home in the U.S. or internationally.”
As a result, millennials are quickly becoming a dominant force in high-end real estate.
Millennials are the most educated generation in history, have higher earnings, and are set to inherit more than any prior generation, according to a May 2020 report by the Brookings Institute.
Characterized by their tech savvy and environmentally conscious values, millennial preferences are poised to dramatically shape the market, a dynamic that has been on display during the Covid-19 pandemic. Beginning almost immediately after the coronavirus hit, for instance, buyers began to flock to areas that offered walkability, nature, and a well-rounded quality of life. (Think food and an art scene.)
Total sales volume in Aspen hit a record high of more than $1.5 billion in the third quarter, while in some neighborhoods of Park City, Utah, median sales prices spiked by more than 50% during the summer, according to Sotheby’s 2021 Luxury Outlook.
Outside the U.S., the Mornington Peninsula outside Melbourne on Australia’s southeastern coast has also seen a similar influx, the report states.
Permanent Changes
Going forward, developers are likely to integrate touchless, high-tech features into more homes and focus on bolstering sustainability credentials in new buildings, Nelson says.
From energy-saving geothermal systems and solar panels to green roofs, “these are the features that are most attractive,” he adds. “If a home is move-in ready and environmentally conscious and has a Tesla charger installed in the garage, those homes are generating a premium, because you have so many buyers interested in competing for them.”
Overall, the luxury real estate market is ripe for growth.
According to a December Sotheby’s International Realty survey, 63% of affiliates polled said they expected luxury home prices to rise over the next three years in their respective markets. More than 70% of respondents reported heightened demand at the end of 2020.
Luxury Headwinds
In the short term, however, disjointed vaccine distribution and renewed quarantine restrictions could hamper foreign buyer interest. Only one-third of Sotheby’s affiliates expect to see an uptick in demand in the first half of 2021, according to the report.
Additionally, amid indiscriminate declines in overall tax revenues caused by the pandemic, governments globally are reassessing property and wealth taxes as a means of filling budget gaps.
“Across all buyers, tax implications are going to be larger part of their home-purchase consideration,” Nelson says.
For the fast-growing cohort of young, affluent buyers eager to snag their dream homes, millennials face slim pickings for options that meet their unique tastes. “Inventories are at near-record lows in general, and especially for the homes with the features they’re looking for,” he says.
Still, Nelson adds that with “wealth creation growing and cost of capital declining, it’s a promising storm for the high-end housing market.”
From the sale of the highest-priced home in the history of Vail, Colorado, to that of an architectural masterpiece in Las Lomas, Mexico, highlighted here are 10 Significant Sales from 2020 represented by the Sotheby’s International Realty® global network.
Vail, Colorado
Sold for $57,250,000 | Tye Stockton, LIV Sotheby’s International Realty
East Hampton, New York
Sold for $45,000,000 | Frank Newbold and Valerie Smith, Sotheby’s International Realty – East Hampton Brokerage
Sold for €18,000,000 | Dirk Hoebrechts, Belgium Sotheby’s International Realty
Lake Tahoe, Nevada
Sold for $38,00,000 | Lexi Cerretti, Sierra Sotheby’s International Realty
New York, New York
Sold for $35,140,000 | Stan Ponte, Sotheby’s International Realty – East Side Manhattan Brokerage
Sydney, South Australia
Sold for $24,600,000 AUD | Michael Pallier, Sydney Sotheby’s International Realty
Montecito, California
Sold for $32,250,000 | Dusty Baker, Eric Lavey, Sotheby’s International Realty – Montecito – Coast Village Road Brokerage, and Michael Dreyfus, Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty
Aspen, Colorado
Sold for $32,000,000 | Craig Morris, Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s International Realty
Las Lomas, Mexico
Sold for $4,750,000 | Jessica Potts and Laura de la Torre, Mexico Sotheby’s International Realty
Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC today announced the brand’s expansion in the Caribbean with the opening of Roatán Sotheby’s International Realty on the island of Roatán off the coast of Honduras. Roatán Sotheby’s International Realty, led by Owner Matt Camron and Operations Manager Micheline Dupont, will serve the luxury residential real estate market throughout Roatán and the neighboring Caribbean Bay Islands of Utila and Guanaja. “Roatán is an attractive second home market offering residents tranquil Caribbean living and a preeminent level of privacy,” said Philip White, president and chief executive officer of Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. “We are proud to have the brand represented in this region by Roatán Sotheby’s International Realty.” According to Camron, the Sotheby’s International Realty® brand provides unrivaled access to qualified buyers around the world. “Our mission at Roatán Sotheby’s International Realty is to create long-term relationships with our clients by offering the best real estate experience possible through our full-service approach,” he said. “The Caribbean Bay Islands are a hidden gem of pristine beaches, world class diving and lush forests. We are delighted to share our special part of the world with global clientele.” The Sotheby’s International Realty network currently has more than 20,000 affiliated independent sales associates located in approximately 880 offices in 69 countries and territories worldwide. In 2016, the brand achieved a record global sales volume of $95 billion USD. Roatán Sotheby’s International Realty listings will be marketed on the sothebysrealty.com global website. In addition to the referral opportunities and widened exposure generated from this source, the firm’s brokers and clients will benefit from an association with the Sotheby’s auction house and worldwide Sotheby’s International Realty marketing programs. Each office is independently owned and operated.