Marbella: Luxury properties returns

The quiet optimism forecasted last month seems to be paying dividends, as there was a distinct increase in the number of luxury property sales in March. In fact, our findings show sales for single-family homes and attached properties have risen nearly 50% compared to February 2023.

The number of new listings entering the market has facilitated this increase in sales which rose over 32.9% for single-family homes and nearly 25.6% for attached properties in March, indicating that sellers are becoming more optimistic about selling again.

The median sold price for both markets remained stable, too, while still slightly below March 2022; prices have climbed against February 2023. The sold price to list price ratio (SP/LP%) also trended back up in March. It moved from 97.67% in February to 98.56% for single family homes and 98.37% to 98.89% for attached properties – indicating that sellers are seeing prices closer to their expectations once again.
By no means do these numbers imply that we are heading back to the overinflated demands of 2020 and 2021, but they do reflect growing confidence in the luxury market as we head further into spring.

Not all things are equal

Overall, the market is still showing that it is favorable to sellers – but this is mostly due to increased sales and, despite increases in new listings, inventory levels remaining below the 10-year norm in many markets. However, significant differences between markets have arisen over the last few months, with some becoming increasingly more favorable for buyers, while others remain firmly in control of the sellers, and the remainder favorable to neither.

Equally confusing is that in some markets, home prices continue to increase, while in others, they are on a downward trajectory. Different price points within the same market also report differing results, and it’s not always the lower priced properties that are selling the fastest! Additionally, results seem to be inconsistent from month to month!

So how are buyers and sellers meant to understand whether it’s a good time to buy or sell?

*Data source: The Institute of Luxury Home Marketing