Most of us look at million dollar properties and swear blind that we wouldn’t change a thing about them. From jaw dropping exterior to dazzling decor inside, we all have that ‘dream home’ that we aspire to own one day. But what if you owned one of the world’s most expensive properties right now? And what if you were looking to add value to a home that seemingly had it all. If you can call it a problem, it’s a problem that the world’s wealthiest homeowners face – the task of taking a property from premium to ultra luxury.
In this article, we’ll try to unpick the difference between premium and ultra luxury, and ask just what it takes to impress the world’s wealthiest homeowners. We’ll also cover various ways to add value to a property that is seemingly perfect.
What is Considered Ultra Luxury?
Whether you’re looking for a premium home, luxury home or ultra luxury home, there’s no certain value point that separates these areas. What one homeowner would consider luxury, another may consider ultra luxury, while another may turn their nose up at the same property!
When it comes to the highest level of properties, certain things are a given. Ultra expensive decor, a cinema room and a desirable location are more expected than they are impressive. But to most people, ultra luxury goes beyond price tag. Instead, it’s the ‘money can’t buy’ touches that come with a home or the intangible details of a property that impress in the luxury housing market.
Adding Value to a Premium Property
Staff
If you’re looking to add value to a property on the rental market, including a team of staff in the monthly rent should allow you to up the price. Nothing is more important to wealthy businesspeople than their time so informing them that a team is on hand to help out with everyday chores is sure to impress them.
Cleaners, chefs, gardeners – there are various roles that can be filled by skilled individuals to keep your tenant happy while also allowing you to charge a more premium price.
Latest Technology
It might be enough for a luxury home to be filled with technology, but only the latest technology will cut it if you are trying to target the top 1% of earners. Millionaires and billionaires aren’t easily impressed, they’ve probably seen most of what money can buy so make sure your standards are super high if you want your property to be seen as ultra luxury.
A lift probably isn’t impressing your potential buyer, but carrying out a lift modernisation to ensure it’s the best lift that money can buy might do. That cinema room we mentioned earlier, you’ll probably need it to come with the best television on the market. Just circling back to our previous point of staff, why not have a private personal trainer on hand to lead any sessions in your five star gym.
1-of-1 Touches
Rich people might be impressed by money, but ultra rich people want exclusivity and scarcity. They want things that other people physically can’t have because only one exists and it belongs to them. Applying this thinking to your property is a great way to make it stand out even in the luxury market.
Forget following the latest interior design trends like everyone else and think hand carved marble sculptures and bespoke ashlar stonework, the type of things that can’t be picked out of a catalogue. While the super wealthy aren’t easily impressed, adding touches to make a property truly unique is one way to their heart.
Use Leading Designers
We mentioned intangible details earlier on, and it’s often the details that can’t be physically held that separates luxury and ultra luxury. The best homes aren’t just judged on the way they look, they’re judged on the designer behind them. Working with the best designer that money can buy is a great way to legitimise the value of a property – while also adding a zero on the asking price!
Whether it’s a world-renowned interior designer behind a stunning, open-plan living area or you’ve tasked a leading landscape architect with renovating an acre garden, potential buyers will be interested in the story behind the property along with contents inside. What better way to write a story than have it written by a world famous designer.
Invisible Touches
Not everything that adds value to a property has to be visible. In fact, it’s the invisible details that often make an ultra luxury home stand out from similar properties on the market. It could be as simple as sound proofing every room in your home or as extravagant as integrating an air purification system into your mansion. Even though these things can’t be seen, it doesn’t make them any less impressive.
Remember, the super wealthy will have seen the best of most physical assets, so it’s about trying to think outside the box when adding value to an elite level property.
The Little Things
Finally, don’t become so obsessed with trying to add the latest trend or technology to your home that you forget about the things that matter to every home. There’s no point spending thousands upgrading your property so it can be considered ultra luxury, only for a lack of general maintenance to undo all your good work.
Even the world’s most expensive homes can run into general maintenance issues, so scour your property to see if it’s in need of weed or mould removal, draughtproofing, decking revival or anything else that comes under the area of general property maintenance.
After all, no billionaire is paying to live in a mouldy property no matter how big the private pool is!
Final Thoughts
The ultra luxury market isn’t a rational one, and purchases are often driven by emotion and status instead of logic. That’s why most of us would probably question many of the additions listed above, but that’s because most people haven’t reached a level of wealth that sees them seek exclusivity over monetary value. To take a property from premium to ultra-luxury, it’s important to stop thinking like a regular homeowner. Rational goes out the window and is replaced by invisible assets, 1 of a kind touches, and intangible details that most people couldn’t care less about. The people that do care about these details though are the people who will be making an offer on your property, and there lies the secret of adding the final 5% of value you were looking for.