- Working With Luxury Property Seekers
- Tips To Listing Luxury Property
- Learning About The Market
- Tips From His Experience
In this edition of Industry Eye, Simon Boden, a key member of the management team at high-end brokerage Luxury Property, shares unique insights into this intriguingly niche market.
Towards the end of 2023, Dubai became the busiest luxury real estate market in the world, surpassing contemporaries such as London and New York. While there has been a continued influx of property investors coming to the city, there has also been a growth in the number of new real estate agents. Simon explains his tips for staying ahead in the market, reveals what working with luxury property seekers is all about, and shares advice for new agents.
How It All Started
I began my career in the UK as a real estate agent and moved to Dubai about eight years ago for a change of scenery. Back then, there were a handful of industry names that truly had international appeal – I joined one of them and honed my local market expertise.
I have always gravitated towards higher-end properties and negotiations at a more prime level, so I worked my way up to a more senior position. Shortly after, I moved on to another brokerage that operated primarily in the luxury space, where I had the opportunity to lead a team. That combination of expertise in the luxury market and leadership skills led me to being recruited as Leasing Director here at Luxury Property.
Working As A Luxury Real Estate Agent
Believe it or not, there is no real difference between the luxury and general markets in terms of the way a deal is conducted. Whether it’s a 2-bedroom apartment in the Marina or a 7-bedroom mansion in Emirates Hills, the process is pretty much identical.
The biggest difference is in the intricacies of the contract negotiations. When working with clients at a certain level, you are more likely to deal with an intermediary operating on the client’s behalf, relaying information and terms back and forth.
Luxury homes also tend to be more unique in appearance compared to properties you find in the general market, often custom-built with bespoke furniture and design elements. This can result in stricter and even more unconventional terms being presented in the contract. By and large, however, the only significant difference you find is in the price point of the deal.
Getting Clients to Work With You
Privacy and security are two of the biggest points that HNWI and UHNWI clients tend to focus on when looking for properties. Gated villas, homes located on single rows and corner units are highly sought-after as they offer greater levels of privacy than other units. The view can be a make-or-break factor, especially if the home happens to look out directly at the one behind it.
When it comes to interior elements, high-end clients expect to see bespoke features and pieces. If a home has been lived in previously and there is any sense of wear or use on any of the furniture or any of the interior design pieces, it can kill interest in that property right away.
There are a number of factors involved in attracting the right kind of client. Media is a huge part of that – one of them being high-quality photography and videography to showcase a property at its best. We also use verification tools like TruCheck™ for Bayut so that interested clients know they are looking at a genuine, readily available listing. And the more TruCheck™ listings we have, the higher the company’s credibility. Putting all those elements together ensures that the property is seen by the largest possible number of people and catches the attention of the HNWI clients looking for properties.
Listing A Luxury Property Online
One mistake new brokers tend to make is just cold calling an area’s list of people to try and get listings from owners. When you have a property owner who is a HNWI or UHNWI, they’re not going to be easy to connect with. The brokers who have been in an area for a while have taken the time to really know the community, who lives and works there. They’ve built relationships and connections; by leveraging their network, they can stay ahead of the curve and be the first in line when a new property is coming to market.
Expertise is another key. When you’re going to list a property, if you have to ask the owner about details such as the unit type, proximity to amenities, etc., then you’ve already lost. You’ve shown that you don’t know the community very well, which makes you less reliable in the eyes of an owner.
We at Luxury Property have built a very well-known luxury brand in Dubai over several years. Our brokers are area experts who know the community, the units they’re dealing with and consequently, they close deals. Rather than just waxing lyrical about our company or our team, we let our results do the talking in the market.
In 2023, for example, we concluded a number of fantastic transactions, including several multi million-dirham rentals that pushed us to another level. We have had high-level transactions in the Jumeirah Islands, Palm Jumeirah, and Al Barari, to name but a few. It’s all well and good to list in these areas and to tout your listings, but to consistently transact in these areas says more about our company than any kind of marketing will.
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Knowing Your Niche
We are very focused on real estate data. We check Ejari contracts and sale prices from the Dubai Land Department’s data on a daily basis and leverage that data to plan our approach to clients. The brokers in our team, as I mentioned before, have their fingers on the pulse of their communities and what’s happening in those areas. If something significant happens in a community, clients can expect us to tell them about it before seeing anything online.
When you are working in that luxury space, professionalism and presentation must be at their peak. When you’re a new broker working your way through the ranks, the stakes are a bit lower – we would never, for example, put a novice broker into Emirates Hills to start. They need room to make mistakes, see where they’re coming up short and improve. At the higher end, however, brokers will find clients who really value their time and expect to see things like professionalism, punctuality and expertise. Negotiation is one skill that every agent needs to hone, especially when they are working at the prime and super prime levels. With those price points, it is crucial to ensure that both sides of the table are happy.
Secrets From Experience
As someone who didn’t start out in the luxury sector, I would never sit here and say that only a certain type of broker is suited to working in that space. The simple answer is yes, anyone can get there, but it requires a fair amount of dedication. Some people are under the illusion that you can just step off a plane into Dubai and start listing multi million-dirham mansions without any local network or contacts – that’s just not going to have a positive result.
Speaking for my team, there have been agents who started out with lower-priced apartments and villas and have now progressed to being Palm villa specialists or Jumeirah Islands specialists. This comes from a mix of hard work, an eye for detail, presentation skills, and strong negotiation skills.
I advise new agents to ensure you’re aligned with the correct brand and that you’re working for a company with a track record of success in the luxury sector. But more importantly, listen to the people who have come before you and have walked that path. When you are trying to build your knowledge and establish yourself in a specific market segment, you want to pay attention to the people who have already done that so you can understand what works and what doesn’t.
Predictions for the future
I wish I had a crystal ball! There are a lot of discussions happening right now about the region and the world at large. I think what you need to see is that in any luxury market, no matter what happens with the economy, prices seem to go up. Buyers, and even tenants, at that level, are willing to pay for what they want, with minimal negotiation. What I’ve seen happening of late is gravitation towards older properties in areas like Palm Jumeirah, Emirates Hills and Jumeirah Islands, which are then transformed into bespoke masterpieces. The prices those homes then sell and rent for are exorbitant, but are they worth it? I think so, given the services and lifestyle options that Dubai provides for its residents.
Based on the trends that the city is following, I do not foresee any changes to the prime and super prime market any time soon.
Working in the leasing sector, I don’t always have an eye on new off-plan launches that are coming up. I know there have been several high-profile launches over the past couple of months and they’re all quite exciting, but I wouldn’t be able to speak about specific projects off the top of my head.
Two of the recent developments that I can talk about, however, are the larger mansions in Tilal Al Ghaf, which are shaping up to be quite spectacular, and the Palm Jebel Ali. There was a lot of hype around Palm Jebel Ali when it was first announced years ago, then after a long lull, it was relaunched to great fanfare last year. If everything stays on track, it has the potential to really rival Palm Jumeirah as an island community in an emerging location.
Ultimately, I would say that what Dubai needs is a big launch of four and five-bedroom villas. Many of the newer projects across the city have been focused around smaller townhouse units, but there is a dearth of supply for larger villas when compared to demand. That is a space where Palm Jebel Ali can make a huge difference and shift the dynamics of the market. That being said, the first handovers aren’t scheduled for another couple of years and if the city’s population continues to grow at the rate that it has in recent times, that could fit in very neatly with that growth.
About Simon Boden
Simon Boden is a Leasing Director at Luxury Property. He has been a part of the real estate industry for over ten years, working across different global markets. Having worked in both sales and leasing, he has built up a solid understanding of every market segment. Simon believes in the power of in-depth knowledge as an agent; understanding your client and area very well. He works closely with each team member to put them in a position where they can achieve sustained success.
About Luxury Property
LuxuryProperty is a dynamic brokerage firm that aims to offer international clients unique access to exclusive properties in Dubai. It is led by a team of experienced agents with international real estate experience. They play the role of trusted advisors to their clients, be it first-time home buyers or seasoned sellers, helping them to make informed decisions.
They offer professional private client advisory services, emphasising discretion while helping clients achieve their buying or selling goals. They firmly believe in taking a refreshing approach to real estate, a firm of trusted advisors who know the market best.