Sotheby’s International Realty has officially published the results from its 2025 Luxury Outlook℠ report, which digs into emerging trends and key developments that are most likely to shape the global luxury real estate landscape next year.
Going by the available details, this particular report highlights significant factors, including how a $84 trillion intergenerational wealth transfer may affect the real estate market, where 135,000 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) are projected to relocate. Not just that, the report also studies the profound impact of “Best Places to Live” rankings on a city’s property values and inventory levels.
More on that would reveal how Sotheby’s 2025 Luxury Outlook report actually derives insights from the company’s international realty agents worldwide who specialize in transactions of the $10 million+ price category.
Complementing these inputs would the availability of data, data which is made available by various different industry leaders including J.P. Morgan Private Bank, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Cerulli Associates, Henley & Partners, UBS, and the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
“Amidst an environment of high interest rates, global elections, and fluctuating economic markers in 2024, the luxury housing market is showing impressive adaptability to face the year ahead,” said Philip White, president and CEO, Sotheby’s International Realty. “Sotheby’s International Realty remains committed to providing consumers with timely information and guidance regarding their real estate portfolios.”
Talk about the published results on a slightly deeper level, we begin from a Sotheby claiming that economy has largely normalized following the volatility of the pandemic years, leading to adjustments in the property market. Now, while home sales volume throughout US, during 2024, were a little behind 2023, the upper brackets ended up performing better than the average priced market.
The next bit of Sotheby’s report focused on the recent devastating wildfires that impacted Los Angeles County, destroying thousands of homes and businesses. To put things into perspective, according to J.P. Morgan economist Abiel Reinhart, these wildfires may be the costliest climate disaster in all of U.S. history. The stated prediction is rooted both in their size and the high value of the residential real estate they destroyed.
Revealing a record great wealth migration in 2024 as an estimated 128,000 HNWIs migrated to new countries, the lowdown in question also predicts that, by 2045, more than $84 trillion will flow from the Silent Generation and Baby Boomers into the bank accounts of their children and grandchildren.
Another detail worth a mention here stems from women emerging as the independent homebuyers. Moving forward, women are expected to be in charge of $34 trillion, or about 38% of all investable assets in the US by 2030. Here, going by Bank of America Institute’s word, coming intergenerational wealth transfer “will contribute to women controlling more wealth than ever before.
Sotheby’s also recorded strong growth in branded residences, with the global branded residential market valued at $66 billion as of 2024.
Rounding up highlights would be a piece of data, which claims that buyers continue to seek homes that align with their personal aspirations and values. As a result, trends such as hybrid working, heightened demand for wellness amenities, and sustainability are expected to shape the luxury housing market, influencing buyers’ decisions to a large extent.
“When we first introduced the Luxury Outlook report in 2021, the definition of home was undergoing a seismic shift because of the pandemic. Unprecedented changes in the real estate market created a critical need to provide our clients with timely intelligence informed in real time by our unparalleled network of global real estate advisors. Our goal with this report is to deliver strategic insights so that clients can make informed decisions in their investment portfolios,” said Bradley Nelson, chief marketing officer, Sotheby’s International Realty. “As we enter 2025, the global luxury property market remains resilient.
Founded in 1976, Sotheby’s International Realty has, so far, established more than 1,100 offices that, on their part, are located in 83 countries and territories worldwide, including 48 company-owned brokerage offices across key metropolitan and resort markets.
