Create the Luxury Kitchen of Your Dreams

Buying a Luxury Home?
Here are strategies to help find your dream home!

When you plan to buy a luxury home, there are many things to consider that will enable you to find and successfully purchase the perfect house for you and your family. A luxury home comes in all shapes and sizes, from an Old World Mediterranean 15,000 square foot estate on 5 acres to a 5,000 square-foot modern home overlooking beautiful Carmel Valley. In recent years, the prices of luxury homes in Pebble Beach, Carmel Valley and Carmel and throughout the United States have been reaching all time records as the real estate market rebounds from the foreclosure crisis. There is a limited inventory of luxury properties for sale at one time in a specific area which also helps drive up prices with multiple buyers bidding on the same luxury estate.

Local buyers are now also competing with buyers throughout the world. Partially due to tight U.S. credit standards facing foreign buyers, the majority of international purchases are all-cash deals. This can put other buyers who need financing at a disadvantage, since all-cash deals tend to move much faster through the purchase process.

A seller of a luxury home is typically interested in showing only to qualified buyers so you will definitely want to have your financing approval early on in the process before hunting for the estate of your dreams. You’ll face far more financial scrutiny today in the high-end market and it may be helpful to go to the bank that has your portfolio. Be prepared with documentation such as bank statements, W-2s, tax returns from the last few of years and other financial statements.

Also, you will find it challenging to find luxury properties online as many high-end properties simply aren’t listed on MLS or search engines. To help protect their privacy, sellers avoid putting information and photos of the property on the internet. So, it’s important to find a qualified real estate agent who is knowledgeable and has experience representing and selling many luxury homes. An agent familiar with the specific luxury market where you intend to buy may very well have inside information about listings before they even hit the open market. Find an agent with top credentials and extensive knowledge in the local market who can also advise on schools, specific blocks in a neighborhood as well as the desired luxury property specifics.

In addition, an experienced agent will be able to help you better determine the market value of a luxury property. Evaluating luxury properties can be a challenge as often, there may be no similar properties for exact comparison.

It’s especially important to carefully inspect a luxury home prior to purchase and you should find a specialized home inspector and trusted builder. You’ll want to schedule a detailed property tour once you have found a property that interests you. These inspections can take a few hours so that you are able to review things such as construction methods, architectural highlights, the neighborhood, how the security works and more.

Luxury homes may feature high end pools, spas, fountains, ponds, lawn irrigation systems, exterior fireplaces, outdoor kitchens, automated features, central vacuum systems, heated floors, high level surveillance and security systems and sophisticated landcape lighting.
​
So, be prepared, find a trusted team of experts and you will find, buy and enjoy a fabulous luxury home for years to come.