The most recent Knight Frank 2016 Wealth Report reveals that over the next ten years, high net worth individuals are expected to expand their property investment. Currently, high net worth individuals hold about 22% of their net worth in property, and over the next ten years, this number is expected to grow to 26%. It’s a significant adjustment. Across the board, wealthy individuals look for ways to manage and hedge against risk. As long as it’s not purchased at the height of a bubble, real estate is a stable, hard asset. Miami is expected to experience a 32% increase in wealth over the next ten years, adding to its population of 29,500 HNWI residents.

Newly wealthy millennials are catching on to this trend. This next generation of financiers, entrepreneurs, and tech buyers are an emerging force in the luxury real estate market. The other factor coming into play are aging boomers purchasing property for their children to distribute wealth and inheritances. Real estate has always been a means to protect wealth. In global cities such as London, New York, and Miami (as well as the west coast of the US), buyers are investing for their own future as well as for their families.

Many high net worth individuals view purchasing an apartment for a child going to college or just starting their first job as a wise investment, especially with rising rents across the board. It makes financial sense to buy. We expect this trend to continue in Miami. With a growing year-round population, we also expect to see more families investing in second properties for their children, which also serve to diversify their own portfolios.

Both New York and Miami continue to be stable investment options. Despite rising real estate values, Miami's market has not reached bubble levels. Both New York and Miami markets remain relatively stable and low risk, especially compared to many other global city markets that are vulnerable either due to military conflict or an artificially inflated housing market. As with New York, Miami is expected to remain a preferred real estate investment city along with a few other international hubs over the next ten years, and property will remain a favored form of wealth protection.

Audrey Ross

Opening her own real estate firm in Miami in 1984, Audrey Ross quickly established herself as one of the city's preeminent purveyors of luxury homes. After years of dedication to her work by providing absolutely the best and the most discreet service to the world's movers and shakers who make up her clientele, she's now known, in international real estate circles, as 'Miami's Woman at the Top.' ...(Read More)