T H E S TAT E O F T H E
LUXURY HOUSING WORLD WIDE
b y C h r i s t i e ’s I n t e r n a t i o n a l Real Estate
Luxury Residential Real Estate —The Rule Defying Market The population of potential luxury home buyers—from billionaires to the less but still affluent—has swelled worldwide in recent years. The ranks of the world’s billionaires grew to number 2,208 in 2018,1 and their combined net worth rose toUS$9.1 trillion, up 18 percent from the year prior. Record-breaking equity markets expanded the wealth of the high-net-worth (HNW) and ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) individuals in 2017, acting as a demand accelerator for luxury property markets the world over. Rising consumer confidence, low interest rates, and a stable global economy growing in concert kept demand for prime property strong throughout 2017 and into 2018, despite localized pockets of tumult and uncertainty that gave some buyers pause. More than half of the world’s HNWIs and UHNWIs own two or more residences,2 and many sought out at least one luxury property acquisition in 2017 and early 2018, whether for a lifestyle upgrade, the safe storage and preservation of wealth,
