Checkbook duel on the Costa del Sol: the mega-rich fight for the mansions of Marbella

Interior of a mansion in the urbanization La Zagaleta, in Benahavís. Garcia-Santos (El País)

Luxury housing on the Costa del Sol is in full swing. Real estate agencies in the area have recorded the best figures in their history in 2021. They have never sold so much at such high prices. It happens on the beachfront, where the square meter exceeds 25,000 euros. Also in urbanizations further from the coast, such as Sierra Blanca, in Marbella. And even further north, where a benchmark of exclusivity such as La Zagaleta, already in Benahavís, is experiencing a unique moment. Sales here reached 256 million euros last year, when its operations tripled compared to 2019.

“We are stronger than ever,” says Christopher Clover, honorary president of the local real estate association Leading Properties Agency. Clover accumulates 52 years of experience in the Marbella market. He founded Panorama Properties in 1970 and has seen the Costa del Sol evolve. He is convinced that today it is one of the ten most important residential destinations on the planet, including Mallorca.

Marbella is its epicenter, but without urban planning and lack of land it includes Estepona and Benahavís. They form a triangle that attracts great fortunes for many reasons, not forgetting that money has always had a safe haven in bricks. Benign climate all year round, proximity to Malaga airport, numerous golf courses, a varied offer in health and private education or luxury restaurants are some factors. The technological drive of the city of Malaga is a new ingredient in the recipe. And the pandemic has brought two more: telecommuting and a change in mentality. “Covid has caused the rich to postpone any future decision. They want to live well and in the best place from now on”, says José Antonio Pérez, researcher at the University of Malaga and professor of Real Estate Ecosystem at the Real State Business School in Torremolinos.

Every time more Youngers

Customers with large current accounts have set their sights on the Costa del Sol. They are getting younger and younger, between 35 and 50 years old. They tend to run large companies, many technology companies. If until now they thought of these houses as their second residence, now they move and have it as a base, traveling a few days a month for work. If, according to the College of Registrars, one out of every four homes sold in Malaga is bought by foreigners, their presence in the luxury sector is massive. According to Panoram Properties, they represent 90%. More arrive from the UK and the Nordic countries. Dutch and Belgians stand out. And Americans and Canadians show up. There are more and more super-rich Spaniards, but, at the moment, few buy a house in Marbella.

They all have a full pocket. “The average customer had between half a million and a million to spend before the pandemic; today it has three ”, says Javier Nieto, CEO and owner of Pure Living Properties, whose sales reached 50 million in 2021. With a schedule full of visits, he takes advantage of a trip on the highway to talk. He talks about apartments that were sold for half a million euros in 2015 and are worth 1.7 million today. In Marbella the new concept is the market ultraprime, more luxurious than ever. They raffle it. “We have more demand than supply,” says Nieto. There are clients who pay even above the price of a home to keep it. Pure auction.

Jimmy Widen, born in Stockholm and founder of the agency 3SA Estate Marbella, says that as well as rising in value non-stop, local properties offer “excellent rental yield potential”. His data says that in 2021 on the Costa del Sol 400% more villas valued at more than three million were sold compared to 2019. “It’s a huge difference,” he highlights. The average value of the properties sold in his agency increased by 135%, to 800,000 euros per client. The German giant Engel & Völkers, with five offices in Marbella, reached 560 million euros in sales, its historical maximum, with an average price per house of 1.8 million. 40% is new construction, such as the 15 four-bedroom villas in the La Fuente urbanization, sold in less than 12 months at prices between two and three million. “Nothing in 2020 presaged that everything was going to go so well,” acknowledges Nathalie Dorpinghaus, director of marketing for the franchise in the area, with 1,100 properties in its portfolio. She highlights a white house with impossible lines facing the sea valued at 11.7 million euros in Los Monteros. Along with Sierra Blanca, Nueva Andalucía or Nagüeles, it is one of the most exclusive on the Costa del Sol. Ferrari, Lamborghini or Bentley vehicles are common on its streets.

A man contemplates the urbanization La Zagaleta. Garcia-Santos (El País)

But the maximum reference is still La Zagaleta, an urbanization that exudes luxury in its 900 hectares in Benahavís, 20 minutes north of Marbella. It has two golf courses, an equestrian club and a strong security service. There is a villa called Ibiza Breeze, with 8,600 square meters of land, nine rooms, a heated pool and a kitchen designed by Zaha Hadid. Marketed by Aedas Homes, it was for sale for 14.5 million euros until a few days ago. No longer. Its deed was signed last week and it is one of the four villas and three plots that have been sold in this resort in the first three weeks of 2022. It continues to rise, maintaining the millionaire figures of 2021, which included the sale of the until last summer it was the most expensive house in Spain, valued at 29 million euros. The CEO of La Zagaleta, Jacobo Cestino, from his office, is optimistic: “We believe that the trend will continue until 2025 and we are going to build four houses each year to take advantage of the pull”. It is double the pre-pandemic average.

The sector agrees on the good forecasts. Just check how 42 of the 43 homes to be built in the UNO project are already reserved, despite still not having a building license. It is one of the few properties available in Marbella’s luxury ground zero, the Golden Mile, next to the mythical Marbella Club Hotel and Puente Romano. Your clients will be the next buyers of luxury homes.

Source: Nacho Sanchez | El País Originalmente en Español

Filed under: Headlines by Alec Reimon
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