The Celebrity Factor

HOW A-LISTERS INFLUENCE THE LUXURY REAL ESTATE MARKET

The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing Blog

While most luxury home buyers aren’t world-famous celebrities, the reality is that A-listers do make up a portion of the luxury real estate market.

As a luxury real estate professional, you might dream about one day being able to represent a celebrity that you adore—but even if that dream never comes to fruition, it’s important for all luxury real estate professionals to understand the undeniable impact that celebrities have on the industry as a whole.

Not only do celebrities set lifestyle trends that influence the real estate market, but they also have the power to affect local real estate demand and even generate marketing opportunities.

To take full advantage of these opportunities, luxury real estate professionals need to understand the ins and outs of the market as it relates to celebrity influence.

CELEBRITIES SET LIFESTYLE TRENDS

People already look to celebrities to influence their clothing choices, hairstyles, brand preferences and the like. However, a celebrity’s authority doesn’t end there; A-listers can also have an impact on the lifestyle trends and preferences of affluent home buyers.

Specifically, celebrities’ choice in home location, architectural style, amenities, and other preferences can become aspirational for other buyers seeking a taste of the glamorous lifestyle.

If more celebrities start buying homes with infinity pools or other high-end features, these same features are likely to be sought after by other affluent buyers over time.

By keeping an eye on lifestyle trends and preferences among celebrities, then, you can gain a sort of “sneak peek” into the future demands of your affluent clientele. This, in turn, can give you a more competitive edge.

CELEBRITY-LINKED PROPERTIES CREATE DEMAND

In addition to celebrity lifestyle trends and buying preferences, properties that have some tie to a celebrity can also create a sense of prestige and status symbol that can generate higher demand. Specifically, properties with a celebrity history can become conversation pieces and may even be used as icebreakers at social events.

With this opportunity in mind, affluent buyers may be willing to pay a premium for a property linked to a celebrity. This may mean that the home was previously lived in by a celebrity or simply stayed in as an Airbnb or similar rental.

CELEBRITY TRANSACTIONS OFFER FREE MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES

When a celebrity buys and/or sells a home, it’s fairly common for that news to attract some media attention. In some cases, the media attention may be significant. Consider, for example, when Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi sold their Beverly Hills home in 2021 for a reported $45 million after they had purchased it from Adam Levine just a couple of years prior.

Aside from the obvious advantages of representing a celebrity during such a real estate transaction, luxury real estate professionals can also take advantage of the free marketing opportunities that this kind of transaction can bring them.

Extensive coverage of celebrity properties can serve as free (and extremely effective) marketing that can help you take your personal brand to the next level.

CELEBRITY-OWNED PROPERTIES IMPACT LOCAL ECONOMIES

Communities with high concentrations of celebrity-owned properties may also inexperience increased tourism and economic growth. This is because celebrity involvement in luxury real estate can attract affluent buyers to invest in the same areas, as they want to live and raise their own families to the same perceived standard as that of a celebrity.

This is exactly why we see so many affluent buyers looking to purchase homes in places like Hollywood and Los Angeles.

As a luxury real estate professional, keeping an eye on where celebrities are buying (and selling) properties can help you stay on top of what are sure to be some of the most in-demand luxury markets in the coming years.