Sales of $100m homes hit record high

"The Legendary Beverly House", Los Angeles. Asking price: $135,000,000 Photo: ChristiesRealEstate.com

The number of homes sold for more than $100 million has reached a record high, according to the new Luxury Defined report from Christie's International Real Estate.

The ultra-high end of the real estate market established "new benchmarks" in 2014, with five properties breaking the $100m barrier.

In Greenwich, Connecticut, Copper Beech Farm — which sits on 50 waterfront acres and was listed by David Ogilvy & Associates — achieved a record US residential sale price of $120 million. That price was eclipsed a short time later with the sale of a beachfront estate on Further Lane in East Hampton, which sold for $147 million.

The other thing the sales had in common was that both were located around the city of New York, rather than in central neighbourhoods. New York only achieved its first $100 million sale later, in December 2014, with a penthouse at one of the city’s new luxury Midtown developments.

Christie's attributes the rise in sales partly to the global economic recovery and soaring stock market prices, but also to a growing prevalence of trophy homes being created.

In 2014, more properties than ever before were listed for sale at that price point.

"More and more one-of-a-kind trophy homes are being built and curated for the world’s UHNW population," notes Christie's.

The highest priced homes in each market sold for an average of 14 per cent below their asking price last year. At the top end of the spectrum, that gap between listing and sale price was even bigger: Copper Beech Farm in Greenwich sold at 39 per cent less than its original asking price. Fleur de Lys, the top sale in Los Angeles, which was listed for $125 million and sold for $88 million, went for 42 per cent less than its list price.

Where will the next record sale take place? Christie's highlights Los Angeles, where prices have already climbed into the $90 million range. Indeed, there are several properties listed in the city for more than $100 million.

"Clearly the question for Los Angeles is not 'if' but 'when,'" says the firm.

"With some of these recent mega sales, the glass ceiling has been broken and people are having more confidence that Los Angeles is in the same league as markets such as the Hamptons and London," adds Jeff Hyland of Hilton & Hyland.