Insights

What’s Driving China’s Emerging Luxury Home buyers in 2017? China’s wealthy home buyers are expressing high levels of consumer confidence when purchasing a place to live in their home country, according to a new report published by Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. The study, “Global Affluence: The Emerging Luxury Consumer,” looked at China along with the United States, the UK, India, and the United Arab Emirates to assess the motivating factors for luxury consumers buying a home. Unlike U.S. and U.K. consumers who say they want to buy a home because it’s the right time in their life, China’s emerging luxury home buyers are seeking “to fit a particular lifestyle.” The report, which examined the spending habits and decisions of those with between US$250,000 and US$1 million in investable assets, also shows that emerging Chinese luxury consumers are even more confident about purchasing a home in their own country, with about 92 percent planning...

Manhattan luxury apartment sales had the strongest week this year, with 34 contracts signed between Jan. 30 and Feb. 5. More contracts were signed last week than in the previous two weeks combined, particularly in the “affordable luxury” market between $4 million and $5.5 million, according to a weekly report released Monday by broker Donna Olshan of Olshan Realty. The report compiles all contracts signed each week for $4 million-plus units in Manhattan. The high number of contracts last week—34 in total—set a record for the first week of February from the time Olshan began tracking the luxury market in 2006, Ms. Olshan said in the report. The number of contracts signed at the lower end of the luxury spectrum underscores industry experts’ current mantra: Demand in Manhattan is skewed toward less-expensive prime units. Recently, townhouses and apartments over $10 million have generally languished on the market unsold or taken dramatic price cuts. For...

Miami Real Estate Sales Falls But Prices Stay Strong. Jonathan Miller, as property appraisers, keeps a close eye on the two real estate markets that offer clues to art market spending. Curbed quotes his recent report for Elliman on Miami’s real estate market. There Miller sees echoes of the art market’s drop in volume but maintenance of price: The large price declines in the luxury markets of both [Miami] regions reflect the significant shift in the mix from the market’s former high-end emphasis to the entry and mid-tier markets. “In our Elliman Reports for Miami Beach and Miami Mainland, price trends showed mixed results reflecting price stability after several years with upward price pressure. The reports show that these markets have exited the state of euphoria of recent years and reset to a lower level of sales and more supply. The large price declines in the luxury markets of both regions reflect the significant shift...