LuxeMark Realty, Luxury Real Estate

Affluent Buyers Want Privacy, Confidentiality

Forget preconceived notions of the wealthy as inheritors of family money. Rather, a recent survey of 683 USA and International agents reveals that the typical buyer of multimillion-dollar homes is a self-made millionaire with "new money."

“Successful business owners, self-employed professionals, and highly paid corporate executives are fueling the boom in new money households. Despite what many think, new money dominates” compared with inherited wealth, says Laurie Moore-Moore, founder of the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing.

The top professions of luxury consumers include the following, according to the survey:
Business or corporate executive: 88 percent
Physician: 37 percent
Lawyer: 31 percent
Financial professional: 30 percent
Entertainer, entertainment executive, or professional athlete: 14 percent

A typical down payment for luxury consumers is 20 percent to 30 percent, or about $400,000 to $600,000 on a $2 million home, according to survey respondents. Additionally, a quarter of clients put down as much as 30 percent to 50 percent of the sale price, the survey found.

Affluent Clients Want to Be Discreet

Practitioners serving affluent clientele are expected to provide a high level of personalized service to both buyers and sellers, according to the survey.

The No. 1 special need that extremely affluent clients require, according to 78 percent of survey respondents, is privacy and confidentiality. “The ability to be discreet” was also identified as a top criteria for selecting a real estate professional in research done by Unique Homes magazine and The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing.

“Wealthy consumers want to know their agent isn’t discussing their transaction over cocktails,” Moore-Moore says.

Other necessary skills for real estate professionals working with luxury consumers, according to survey:
Customized service: 69 percent
Ability to work well with executive assistants, CPAs, and attorneys: 44 percent
Inside scoop on the market: 36 percent
Ability to provide emotional support: 17 percent
Personal rapport with clients: 11 percent.

Must-Have Amenities

When asked about "must have" amenities that buyers require in their luxury homes, 60 percent of respondents answered that their customers want media rooms and 60 percent said their customers want "wired" homes.

On the flip side, the sales associates polled said that their clientele believe that gourmet kitchens, granite countertops, and wet bars are no longer considered luxuries.

— By Camilla McLaughlin for REALTOR® Magazine Online

Press Releases & Industry News

Florida's Top 10 Communities for Kids

WINDERMERE, FL -- Location is always important when buying a house, especially for homebuyers choosing a home and community for their family and children. While quality public schools are an important consideration, many parents and demographers list six criteria that define a town as best for families with children.

Dr. Andrew Schiller, a specialist in American demographics and creator of the NeighborhoodScout search engine, analyzed government data to identify the Florida communities with the best overall combination of attributes parents and researchers cite as important. He combined data from the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the FBI, the U.S. Justice Department and the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight to create a list of the top 10 Florida communities for families with children.

"We were looking for those very select communities that have both quality public schools and an exceptional family-friendly environment -- not towns that may excel at one or two criteria but are lacking in other ways," says Schiller.

The criteria used included quality public schools, safety from crime, a high proportion of families with children in the community, many adults with college degrees or advanced degrees, many families who own their homes and homes that are predominantly single-family residences, regardless of the setting being urban, suburban or rural.

Schiller's top 10 list in Florida includes:

1. Windermere

2. Boca Raton

3. Winter Springs

4. Key Biscayne

5. Longwood

6. Orange Park

7. Fort Lauderdale (chiefly west of the Florida Turnpike)

8. Jupiter

9. Oviedo

10. Naples

The top towns range in price, setting and location, and are located from the Jacksonville area to South Florida. The panhandle was included in the research, though no towns made the top ten.

Homeowners Need to Take Safety Precautions

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Summer is vacation season, and when Florida gets steamy, many residents head north. FAR created a list of safety tips suitable for giving to clients.

Crime rates across the country often start to peak as temperatures rise during warm weather months -- the same time that many families leave their homes unoccupied and unprotected.

"Their home represents a huge financial investment for most people, but it is also the place where they raise their families, build memories and share their dreams for the future," says Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR) President Frank Kowalski. "It just makes sense to take steps to protect something so priceless."

The following homeowner strategies make a home less of a target for criminals:

• No "Home Alone": Before leaving your home during the day, make it look as if someone is still at home by using timers on lights in various rooms. Even though daylight hours are longer during the summer, it may still get dark faster than you expect or you may return home later than anticipated, and taking this step ensures that your home appears occupied at all times.

• No Open Door Policy: Make sure all doors leading to the home and garage are locked, even when leaving for short periods of time. The typical burglary takes less than five minutes, and unlocked doors, combined with an empty home, put out the "welcome mat" for crime.

• Someone to Watch Over Me: Be landscape smart. Shrubbery and other plants can grow very rapidly during the warm, wet summer months, so keep them trimmed to allow your neighbors to keep an eye on your home. Also, an unkempt yard could be viewed as a sign of an empty home to a burglar.

• A Key Reminder: When leaving home, take your house keys along or leave a spare set with a trusted neighbor. Never leave a key under a welcome mat, in a mailbox or other hiding spots -- most burglars know where to look.

• Crime Doesn't Take a Vacation: If you're planning to be away from home for more than a day or two, ask a neighbor to park a car in your driveway and pick up your mail and newspapers -- or be sure to make arrangements to cancel the paper and hold the mail. Disable your garage door opener and manually lock it from the inside, and don’t forget to check that the door leading from the garage to the home is locked, too.