Understanding wealthy buyer trends is key to selling estates

Understanding the investment trends and interests of the wealthiest segment of homebuyers should be a priority for the luxury real estate agents.

To market and sell some of the area’s premier homes year after year, such agents combine their experience with research from organizations such as Wealth-X / Altrata to inform their strategy.

In its latest report on report on the world’s wealthiest people, “Residential Real Estate 2023: Spotlight on the world’s leading markets for the wealthy,” Wealth-X uses a new methodology that considers all residences – primary and secondary – to provide a snapshot of where the wealthy choose to live, work and play, with a focus on individuals with a net worth of more than $30 million.

What Wealth-X researchers found is that the U.S. has the highest number of ultra-wealthy residents, dominating the list of the world’s top 20 cities by ultra-high net worth residential footprint.

Wealth-X ranks Dallas at No. 14 for global cities with the highest concentration of ultra-wealthy homeowners, with 4,636 residents. New York City continues to lead in the rankings.

The country’s geographic and business diversity make it ripe for a growing ultra-wealthy population.

Over the past three years as the pandemic affected the way people lived, the concept of luxury evolved, according to Wealth-X. No longer is it about things or acquisitions. And it’s not just about experiences. For the ultra-wealthy, it is about the way they choose to live and how their homes support those choices and needs.

“The significance of ‘home’ for the wealthy — as a haven for family, a place of work or a vacation escape for personal wellbeing — remains as strong as ever,” the report’s authors note.

Homes must work to keep together families and loved ones, so larger properties and compounds are in demand. Those properties must accommodate not only generations of family but also the support staff, including chefs, educators and trainers they need.

Ultra-wealthy homeowners want to ensure that they can access services they want – when and where they want them, and they’re willing to consider properties that have previously been more challenging to sell.

These buyers also are again drawn to the city living, whether for their business, cultural, family or lifestyle reasons. This continues to drive the luxury residential real estate market globally.

As noted by the report’s authors: “Despite a backdrop of more volatile global politics and more visible east-west tensions, the globalization of luxury real estate is a trend that is unlikely to halt any time soon.”