WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -
Sept. 5, 2013 -
PRLog -- Last year, California saw a record-breaking number of homes sold for over $5 million. The high-end real estate market (http://troop.com/
luxurysearch.php)
has enjoyed steady growth in the recent years, due to a myriad of factors that together, create a climate ripe for luxury real estate sales.Troop Real Estate’s (http://troop.com/
index.php) West County Manager, Bob Harrison (http://troop.com/
phpalbum/main.php?
cmd=imageview&var1=BobHarrison.jpg)
, weighs in on the subject. “As the economy stabilizes and the rest of the market improves, high-net-worth individuals are looking for investment opportunities in luxury homes,” he states.“Buyers and sellers in the prestige market tend to respond to different motivations and incentives than the rest of the market. Job security, down payment sizes and mortgage interest rates don’t play the same role. Return on investment in a low interest-rate environment and safe-haven investing do play a role,” said the President of DataQuick (http://www.dqnews.com/
Articles/2013/
News/California/
MDCA013013.aspx)
, a real estate news and data source.Over 697 homes sold for over $5 million last year, beating the previous record of 491 in 2011. This upward trajectory of high-end home sales inspires both confidence and fear in buyers (
http://troop.com/buyers.php).“Buyers sitting on the sidelines fear paying higher prices by waiting,” said CNBC’s John Schoen.The Wall Street Journal reports that as many as 20% of luxury homes are purchased by international buyers in the LA metro area. As investors were forced to bide their time as the market steadied itself, there is now a pent-up demand, creating a market that favors sellers (
http://troop.com/sellers.php). The momentum from recent market growth and price gains has buyers jumping into the buying arena quickly, while they still believe there is a worth-while return on their investment.
