Luxury Housing Market No Longer Out Of Reach For Some ‘Move-Up’ Buyers: Report

Authored by Mary Prenon via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Many people recall the Emmy Award–winning sitcom “The Jeffersons,” whose theme song references George and Weezie “moving on up.” Today, that trend is making a comeback in the luxury market, as “move-up” buyers are entering it for the first time.

Coldwell Banker’s 2025 Mid-Year Global Luxury Report indicates the U.S. luxury home market remains strong, with more buyers whose significant financial gains on the sales of their current homes are pushing them into a new level of home-buying opportunities.

In preparing the report, the national real estate brokerage analyzed luxury market data from 120 U.S. markets and surveyed more than 200 of their luxury-property specialists to identify five current trends shaping this market segment.

“Buyers who once thought luxury was out of reach are now finding themselves in that tier by default,” Michael Altneu, vice president of the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Program, said in the report.

“They’re coming to the market with significant equity and high expectations, and they’re helping to sustain activity.”

This group includes homeowners who purchased properties five or more years ago and have made significant gains on their real estate investments.

According to Realtor.com, the threshold prices for the luxury home market vary from state to state, with a low of $750,000 in West Virginia, to a high of $5.49 million in New York.

Elena Novak, a lead real estate researcher analyst at PropertyChecker.com, told The Epoch Times that the trend of “move up” buyers is real and growing.

“This is mostly due to record-high home equity, and many are putting their money toward larger homes, often in cash or with very small mortgages,” she said, citing an earlier report by data company ATTOM that notes U.S. home sellers in 2024 made an average profit of $122,500 per sale.

However, Novak cautioned that the housing ladder is getting stuck.

“While these buyers do help free up some mid-range homes, many other homeowners are staying put because they don’t want to give up their low mortgage rates,” she said. “This limits supply for first-time and middle-income buyers.”

Novak believes that the effect of this “move up” trend will be mostly positive for the local economy.

“A move-up buyer means two homes are sold, their old one and the new one [they bought], and that creates more spending, more local jobs, and more tax income,” she said.

She believes the trend is also helping to keep the high-end market healthy, particularly in migration areas like the Sun Belt.

Shaun Michael Lewis, CEO of Clearwater Properties, agrees, adding that the trend is equally as popular in the West.

“Buyers who five years ago might have secured a modest $400,000 house in Bozeman, Montana, are now sitting on perhaps $600,000, $700,000 in equity and can now contemplate the purchase of a home around $1.2 million to $1.5 million in other ‘less hot’ locations where they can get much more home for their money,” he told The Epoch Times.

Nadia Evangelou, senior economist and director at Real Estate Research, told The Epoch Times that the luxury market has been outperforming all other price segments over the past year—in particular, the $1 million-plus tier.

“However, in May 2025, we saw a shift—sales in this segment declined 0.6 percent year over year, marking the first drop in over a year,” she said.

“This softening at the top of the market suggests that broader market dynamics are catching up with high-end buyers.”

Evangelou suggested that the recent stock market volatility could be a possible factor, as it often influences liquidity and buying behavior in the luxury market.

Lewis believes those “moving up” will not only help fuel the tax base, but also the local economy with new luxury homeowners shopping, frequenting restaurants, and hiring specialized services such as landscaping and property management.

On the flip side, the trend is forcing many potential buyers to drive further out from towns like Bozeman to find listings under $400,000.

“This housing shortage also makes it harder for businesses to recruit and keep staff and often forces employers to invent  interim housing fixes like temporary lodging,” Lewis said.

While luxury sales remain strong, he contends they’re splitting the market in half.

“Sellers who are selling properties priced above $1 million are still enjoying relatively quick sales, while homes priced from $600,000–900,000 are sitting on the market for longer, “ he said.

Other Luxury Market Trends

More than 68 percent of those surveyed by Coldwell Banker reported that clients are either maintaining or growing their real estate exposure, with another 51 percent reporting an increase in all-cash transactions. The report indicates that clients are also more unlikely to compromise on lifestyle preferences, property conditions, or luxury features.

“Affluent buyers still see real estate as a safe haven to grow and protect their wealth,” Altneu said in a statement. “But as the market balances and more inventory comes online, they can also be more choosy than in recent years.”

Another trend the report found is that real estate remains a cornerstone of wealth strategy, especially during times of economic uncertainty. It maintains that affluent buyers view real estate as safe haven as well as a valuable tool for portfolio diversification.

“Smart Luxury” is a third emerging trend with luxury homebuyers making more practical considerations such as value for price, tax strategy, estate planning, and long-term investment potential. According to the report, these tend to be taking the place of over-the-top amenities or “trophy” locations.

The fourth trend is a wider divide between the ultra-wealthy versus the aspirational buyer. This translates to buyers with a net worth of $1 million to $5 million as opposed to buyers with a net worth of $30 million and above. The report finds those in the $1 million to $5 million range tend to be more cautious and often target homes with renovation potential.

The final trend pertains to cash buyers, with 96 percent of Coldwell’s luxury specialists reporting buyers maintaining or increasing all-cash deals.

“Ultra-high-net-worth individuals are not just buying one property—they’re building real estate portfolio,” Jade Mills, international ambassador of the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Program said in the report.

“These buyers are paying all cash specifically because they want hard assets independent of market swings.”

The report quotes data from the Institute for Luxury Marketing showing the luxury single-family home inventory has escalated by 19.6 percent and attached property inventory by 14.8 percent compared with 2024. Still, single-family home prices grew by 1.8 percent year over year and 8 percent compared with 2023. Prices for attached properties have advanced even more—by 8.4 percent year over year and 16.5 percent over the past two years.

An April study by the University of California San Diego Rady School of Management found that all cash home buyers have an advantage by paying about 10 percent less than mortgage buyers.

“When sellers accept a mortgage offer, it comes with risk,” Michael Reher, study co-author and assistant professor of finance at the Rady School of Management said in a statement. “There is a risk the deal will fall through because there’s a third-party mortgage lender who needs to approve the loan for the borrower .”

Reher and a colleague conducted the study after they both had experienced mortgage offers to homes being rejected because sellers chose an all-cash offer instead.

A recent Bankrate blog on cash offers weighs both the pros and cons of these types of transactions, noting quicker closing and less red tape when dealing with a lender, but also the possibility of not receiving the highest amount on the deal.

“Ultimately, deciding whether an all-cash offer is right for you will depend on whether you want to sell as fast as possible,” the webpage reported. “If you have time and want to aim for top dollar, you might get a better deal from a buyer who’s financing.”