How to Buy Luxury Gifts this Holiday Season

According to Forbes Magazine, “Luxury these days is not about price or brand name or status. It’s about heritage, exclusivity, access and experience. It’s also about items that are deliberate, thoughtful and beautifully functional. Simplicity is genius, after all.” We agree. Because the Prime Team caters to clients in the #luxury market, we wanted to provide our readers, subscribers and friends with some helpful hints for finding and purchasing the perfect holiday gift for anyone on your holiday gift list who seems to have everything.

Here are some Holiday Gift Suggestions for Hard-to-Buy-for Friends and Family

• If money is no object, you might find what you’re looking for at Harrods. Choices include Annoushka Mythology Tsar Feather Earrings for £11,500. At the current rate of exchange, that would be about $18,089.50. You might also consider the matching Annoushka Mythology Tsar Feather Palm Cuff for £12,500 or $19,662.50. If jewelry won’t do, don’t worry; Harrods has lots of other luxury gift options.
• Did you know that Neiman Marcus has a line called Indulgent Gifts? They include gifts such as the Burberry Stainless Steel Watch with Mother-of-Pearl & Diamonds at $1,695.
• For the kids—consider a 28” Steiff elephant for $570 or a child’s Burberry Puffer Jacket with Fur Hood in Cerulean Blue for $495.
• The Bergdorf Goodman website breaks one-of-a-kind gift suggestions into categories by price range. Want to spend under $100? How about a delicious chocolate pizza by Le Comptoir de Mathilde for $50. Looking for something under $200? Check out $195 Ray Ban Black Denim Textured Wayfarer Sunglasses. The under $500 category features a Rag & Bone Kent Tweed-Print High-Top Sneaker for $400.
• Looking for something no less luxurious but at a slightly lower price point? Consider Forbes’ suggestion of Autodromo slingback driving gloves for $110.
• Affordable luxury is available on Amazon.com. One idea is a Perry Ellis Zippo Lighter at about $70. Sharper Image has several out-of-the-box suggestions like an Executive Bison Briefcase at $300, an 18-bottle Dual Wine Refrigerator at $250, a 100 Cigar Glass top Humidor for $90 or, for pet lovers, a Soho Pet Bed for $150.

For more ideas, you could order Luxury World: The Past, Present and Future of Luxury Brands, which would set you back a mere $20 on Amazon.com. And if you are in the market to buy or sell your luxury home in or around the Lake Arrowhead area, consider working with the Prime Team. #RealEstate investing can be tricky—especially if you are in the market for #LuxuryProperty.

Don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. Recently named the exclusive Lake Arrowhead member of Leverage Global Partners, we are perfectly positioned to help you take advantage of today’s luxury market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.

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5 Steps to Help you Sell your Luxury Home

Part two of a two-part series

Although it’s difficult to quantify the definition of a luxury property, most buyers know one when they see it. The scale is grand. The location, ideal. The house, much more than a home. If you are looking to buy or sell a luxury home, you are in good company, as estate sales are hitting records across the country. For example, the number of California homes selling for $2 million or more reached an all-time high in 2013.

In our last blog post, we covered 10 Tips for Buying Luxury Property. This week, we will conclude our two-part series by focusing on how to sell a luxury home. Admittedly, the last several years have been volatile in terms of the housing market. However, one niche segment has remained fairly strong—the ultraluxury segment.

According to Business Insider writer, Abby Rogers, “While talking to realtors and industry insiders…we heard some great home-selling tales and got valuable tips about how to sell an astronomically-priced home.”

5 Luxury Home Selling Tips

1. Show the Value – more important for a luxury property than for any other house, valuable assets should be showcased in a way that appeals to luxury buyers.
2. Understand Buyers – while their market may have been the slowest to change, luxury buyers today understand how important it is to invest in the perfect property, not just for vacation or even full-time use, but for potential future investment.
3. Reach Your Target Market – when you’re selling a modest home, it might suffice to list with a novice realtor whose ad campaign will focus strickly on the local market. But if you don’t want to waste time, and if you want to make sure you get the best available offer, work with an agency that offers global exposure. The Prime Team, for example, is a member of Leverage Global Partners. In addition to offering exceptional service and connectivity, Leverage differentiates itself from existing international luxury real estate associations by increasing the online and social media presence of their members, and providing marketing tools designed to help each member expand their individual business. Leverage promotes the presidents of member firms and extends media access for their members’ properties through a robust public relations outreach and digital platform.
4. Stage It – studies prove that people respond with higher offers when they see properties that are perfectly staged. Most of us just don’t have a good enough imagination to picture how to beautifully furnish a luxury home. So, unless your real estate agent advises leaving your home as it is, consider hiring a company which will do all of the work for you. The right luxury agent will be able to recommend staging companies and may even offer to work with the stager on your behalf.
5. Network – Referrals are vitally important when it comes to selling your home. So don’t list with someone who is new to the area or hasn’t worked hard to develop valuable connections. Word of mouth remains the best sales tool ever invented. So your broker’s associates multiply your pool of perspective buyers, which will result in a quick sale and a high price.

#RealEstate investing can be tricky—especially if you are in the market for #LuxuryProperty. If you are interested in buying or selling property in Lake Arrowhead, California or the surrounding area, don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. Recently named the exclusive Lake Arrowhead member of Leverage Global Partners, we are perfectly positioned to help you take advantage of today’s luxury market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.

10 Tips for Buying Luxury Property

Although it’s difficult to quantify the definition of a luxury property, most buyers know one when they see it. The scale is grand. The location, ideal. The house, much more than a home. If you are looking to buy or sell a luxury home, you are in good company, as estate sales are hitting records across the country. For example, the number of California homes selling for $2 million or more reached an all-time high in 2013.

According to data prepared by Nationwide Real Estate Schools:“ the 11.6% price growth in California over the last year means that a house worth $925,000 last summer may be worth $1,032,300 today. (What’s more), the influx of international buyers is pushing up prices at the high end.”

When it comes to looking for a starter home or even a modest upgrade, the expertise and experience of your real estate agent is far less important than if you want to purchase a luxury home. The reasons for this are many:

• Time is money. Investing in luxury property is done mostly by people whose success is owed to hard work and wise use of time. While junior employees can afford the time to scour websites and pound the pavement in search of great bargains, successful entrepreneurs and C-suite executives understand that time is money. So they appreciate working with an expert who does the legwork for them—showing only the best possible options.
• Connections are key. Luxury property is unlike that on a more modest level, in that networking is critical. The most luxurious properties come on the market only to be snatched up by the first discerning consumer. So anyone who is interested in buying or selling a luxury home will benefit from the experience of brokers and agents who are in the know.
• Money talks. The real estate professional you choose for a relatively small real estate transaction is less critical than if you are dealing with a six-figure sale. Don’t leave your property search to someone who doesn’t intricately understand the market.

To help you on your quest, we have prepared 10 steps to help you buy luxury property. In next week’s blog, we will focus on 10 steps to help you prepare to sell your luxury home.

5 Steps to Help You Buy Luxury Property

1. Find the right agent. Although this is always the case, in luxury transactions, working with the perfect real estate professional will make the difference between a successful transaction and a frustrating process. The Prime Team is a Leverage Global Partner, uniquely aligned with the most prestigious independent real estate brokerage firms around the world. Leverage Global Partners offers its members the opportunity to better serve their clients’ relocation and real estate portfolio needs by establishing each member firm as a key player in the international real estate arena. Prime Properties is the only Leverage member in Lake Arrowhead.
2. Don’t overlook the basics.The foundation of energy efficiency begins with the basics — sealing and insulation, an orientation for optimal efficiency, adequate ventilation, an HVAC system correctly sized for the house and Energy Star-rated appliances (or better)! The green issue looming on the horizon is water usage. Consider any feature that conserves water or collects water to be a plus.
3. If necessary, procure financing in advance, if possible. Most brokers who specialize in luxury real estate will be able to assist you with this. As long as the terms you offer are attractive and you come in with a large down payment, you are in equal position with a cash buyer who is offering less than market value for the home, according to Iyna Bort Caruso of The Wall Street Journal.
4. Do your due diligence. In many cases, since luxury homes are large, they feature amenities that may require specialized home inspectors. (If you work with an experienced real estate professional, he or she will be able to help you find experts of this kind.)
5. Don’t rush the process. Although the market has improved, it may take awhile to find the perfect property. Trust the agent you are working with to find you the right home and to negotiate on your behalf to make sure you secure it.

#RealEstate investing can be tricky—especially if you are in the market for #LuxuryProperty. If you are interested in buying or selling property in Lake Arrowhead, California or the surrounding area, don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. Recently named the exclusive Lake Arrowhead member of Leverage Global Partners, we are perfectly positioned to help you take advantage of today’s luxury market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.