Wealthy people have always included luxury homes among their assets and a new survey shows that their desire remains strong.
A survey of high net worth individuals by Luxury Portfolio reveals that 35% view real estate as the most obvious indicator of wealth and 38% are looking to buy in the next three years.
But North America’s wealthy buyers have a different priority to those in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
While around 4 in 10 respondents in each of those regions said a strong emotional connection to a home was their top reason they purchased their current residence – 37% globally – just 20% of North Americans agreed.
For those in this region, the lot, location and size of the home was a bigger concern.
While globally 59% of luxury buyers prefer urban locations, in North America suburban locations were slightly more popular (46%).
"Despite this emotional connection, 85% of wealthy buyers consider the purchase of real estate a rational choice," said Stephanie Anton, president of Luxury Portfolio International. "Real estate signifies success for these buyers, both internally and externally to their peers."
Lower desire to sell
The survey found that less than a quarter of respondents plan to sell in the next three years, suggesting a seller’s market will continue in the luxury sector.
"We are pleased to see that as we watch wealth grow among the top 10% of consumers globally, so too do we see continued interest in, and appetite for, luxury real estate both as a financial as well as an emotional investment," stated Anton.
