Sotheby's International Realty released its 2025 Mid-Year Luxury OutlookSM report, which reinforces luxury real estate as a safe haven for ultra-high-net-worth homebuyers and sellers navigating market shifts. The findings reveal that while economic uncertainties and stock market fluctuations may create strategic opportunities for sophisticated investors, the wealthiest U.S. households continue to see the greatest real estate gains.1 Beyond market dynamics, the report also delivers critical intelligence on financing strategies, natural disaster impacts on property values, and identifies five emerging and re-emerging luxury property markets – essential insights for making pivotal real estate decisions in today's economic landscape.
The 2025 Mid-Year Luxury Outlook report draws on insights from Sotheby's International Realty affiliated agents worldwide who specialize in transactions in the US$10 million and up price category. Their expertise is complemented by data and analysis from UBS, J.P. Morgan, Moody's, McKinsey and Company, Bain and Company, Cotality (formerly CoreLogic), the National Association of REALTORS®, and the National Association of Home Builders®.
Key takeaways in the report include:
• Despite ongoing concerns about tariff impacts and economic uncertainty, May 2025 inflation data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics beat economists' expectations, according to a June 2025 report in The New York Times.
• Sales of properties at US$10 million and above soared between February 1 and May 1, 2025, compared to that same period in 2024, according to analysis published in May 2025 by The Wall Street Journal.
• In the U.S., the top half of the wealthiest households saw the biggest gains in real estate value among all homeowners in 2024, according to an April 2025 report by Realtor.com®.
• According to the 2025 Mid-Year Sotheby’s International Realty® agent survey, the top transaction method for luxury property was cash (88%).
• The post-disaster market is experiencing increased interest, particularly where there are opportunities for rebuilding or new construction. An April 2025 report by The Wall Street Journal supports this and found that wealthy individuals continue to move to locations that are at risk of climate events and are “setting home price records when they get there.”
• In 2024, India's luxury real estate market was valued at approximately US$45 billion and is projected to reach US$105 billion by 2030, according to a report released in January 2025 by market research company MarkNtel Advisors.
• Puerto Rico’s highest recorded property sale grew from US$2 million to $30 million in a decade, according to local property records.
• Renewed confidence and momentum in San Francisco, CA are driving sales. Sotheby’s International Realty – San Francisco Brokerage closed several transactions over US$20 million in 2024, topping previous records.
Click here to read the complete report.
1 Realtor.com®, “High-End Housing Market Trends and Outlook,” April 9, 2025