29-07-2015, 11:22 PM
Ray White says luxury yachts back in vogue for jetsetters
THE AUSTRALIAN JULY 30, 2015 12:00AM
Samantha Hutchinson
Property Writer
Ray White Marine Shoot
Ray White chairman Brian White and marine business head Rick Rodwell on a luxury cruiser in Sydney yesterday. Picture: Britta Campion Source: News Corp Australia
A surge in interest for the country’s most expensive property has buoyed real estate agency Ray White to enter another, equally plush, asset class: luxury yachts.
In a deal signed yesterday, the century-old real estate agency will parlay its experience marketing luxury property into selling luxury motor boats, with exclusive distribution rights for classic Italian motor yacht builder Ferretti Group.
The tender of choice for the likes of Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bardot and Richard Burton, it is the first time the Italian motor yachts have been available for purchase in Australia.
According to the group, the same wave that has lifted property prices and turnover activity is filtering into other luxury asset classes, with big-ticket purchases including fast cars and luxury boats back in vogue.
“We’re seeing the best market conditions we’ve seen since 2005 and 2006,” Ray White chairman Brian White said. “Obviously there’s been a huge recovery in property, but it’s (at) that point where people are thinking about their next investment.”
It is a turning point for the group’s marine business, which began in the wake of the global financial crisis when a swag of Gold Coast waterfront owners started asking Ray White real estate agents to sell their boats when they sold their homes.
Under the new agreement, the group will add the line of made-to-order yachts to sell alongside its established brokerage of second-hand and distressed assets.
The market is at a point where seafarers are willing to buy new boats rather than second-hand ones, according to Ray White Marine head Rick Rodwell.
“When we first started out, we were selling boats that people wanted to divest,” he said. “But now there’s certainly more positivity within the marine industry, and even though we’ve got modest forecasts for the next year or two, we believe it will get back where it used to be.”
He has reason to be confident.
Despite economic headwinds and European instability, there is growing evidence that Australian luxury consumers are still spending up big.
Luxury vehicle sales hit record highs last month, according to CommSec, with marques including BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi breaking Australian sales records alongside the likes of Maserati and Porsche, at a time when anecdotal evidence also has pointed to a lift in luxury watch sales throughout Australia.
“Higher home prices are boosting wealth levels and consumer spending,” CommSec chief economist Craig James said. “Aussie consumers are keeping it quiet, but they are buying luxury cars in record numbers (with) high-end luxury cars now representing almost 10 per cent of passenger car and SUV sales.”
Buyers who had moved into new homes in the past 18 months were now pondering their next property investment and considering options for weekenders and holiday homes, boosting inquiry and turnover rates in the likes of NSW’s southern highlands and Palm Beach, Noosa, and Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.
Owners who bought homes on the water were also considering buying a boat, Mr White said.
“When the market is good, the market’s good, and when it’s not, you bunker down … but at the moment you’ve got that confidence and capacity.”
THE AUSTRALIAN JULY 30, 2015 12:00AM
Samantha Hutchinson
Property Writer
Ray White Marine Shoot
Ray White chairman Brian White and marine business head Rick Rodwell on a luxury cruiser in Sydney yesterday. Picture: Britta Campion Source: News Corp Australia
A surge in interest for the country’s most expensive property has buoyed real estate agency Ray White to enter another, equally plush, asset class: luxury yachts.
In a deal signed yesterday, the century-old real estate agency will parlay its experience marketing luxury property into selling luxury motor boats, with exclusive distribution rights for classic Italian motor yacht builder Ferretti Group.
The tender of choice for the likes of Sophia Loren, Brigitte Bardot and Richard Burton, it is the first time the Italian motor yachts have been available for purchase in Australia.
According to the group, the same wave that has lifted property prices and turnover activity is filtering into other luxury asset classes, with big-ticket purchases including fast cars and luxury boats back in vogue.
“We’re seeing the best market conditions we’ve seen since 2005 and 2006,” Ray White chairman Brian White said. “Obviously there’s been a huge recovery in property, but it’s (at) that point where people are thinking about their next investment.”
It is a turning point for the group’s marine business, which began in the wake of the global financial crisis when a swag of Gold Coast waterfront owners started asking Ray White real estate agents to sell their boats when they sold their homes.
Under the new agreement, the group will add the line of made-to-order yachts to sell alongside its established brokerage of second-hand and distressed assets.
The market is at a point where seafarers are willing to buy new boats rather than second-hand ones, according to Ray White Marine head Rick Rodwell.
“When we first started out, we were selling boats that people wanted to divest,” he said. “But now there’s certainly more positivity within the marine industry, and even though we’ve got modest forecasts for the next year or two, we believe it will get back where it used to be.”
He has reason to be confident.
Despite economic headwinds and European instability, there is growing evidence that Australian luxury consumers are still spending up big.
Luxury vehicle sales hit record highs last month, according to CommSec, with marques including BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi breaking Australian sales records alongside the likes of Maserati and Porsche, at a time when anecdotal evidence also has pointed to a lift in luxury watch sales throughout Australia.
“Higher home prices are boosting wealth levels and consumer spending,” CommSec chief economist Craig James said. “Aussie consumers are keeping it quiet, but they are buying luxury cars in record numbers (with) high-end luxury cars now representing almost 10 per cent of passenger car and SUV sales.”
Buyers who had moved into new homes in the past 18 months were now pondering their next property investment and considering options for weekenders and holiday homes, boosting inquiry and turnover rates in the likes of NSW’s southern highlands and Palm Beach, Noosa, and Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula.
Owners who bought homes on the water were also considering buying a boat, Mr White said.
“When the market is good, the market’s good, and when it’s not, you bunker down … but at the moment you’ve got that confidence and capacity.”