How Luxury Interior Designers and Real Estate Agents are Transforming the Housing Market 

The Luxury Housing Market

Typically, buyers are on the hunt for “move-in-ready” homes, but in the post-pandemic housing market, with a limited inventory of luxury homes sought by a growing number of high-income buyers, behavior is by necessity different.  In Arizona, many potential buyers end up purchasing homes that have potential, and then turning to specialty interior designers and architects to customize these homes to their exact desires and needs.  

This is especially true in America’s fastest-growing cities which includes the Phoenix metro area. In fact, Arizona is home to five of the 15 fastest-growing cities in America, with the median home price 20% higher than the national average.   

Arizona is among the most attractive states for higher-earner migration, gaining more than 5,200 high-earning households in the last year alone. The affluent buyers’ demand has been reflected by a steady year-over-year increase in luxury house values, as builders and sellers have been setting records for luxury home sales in Arizona, a trend continuing to grow with no end in sight. 

• In 2022, a mega-mansion sold for $28.1 million in Scottsdale’s Silverleaf community hitting a new state record.    
• In 2023, at Crown Canyon Estates, a luxury community surrounded by the Phoenix Mountain Preserve, an even higher sale price made news.   
• Crown Canyon Estates builder, BedBrock Developers, with their award-winning in-house architect Stratton Andrews,  made headlines when a mansion, dubbed the ‘crown jewel’ of this subdivision, went on the market priced at $30,600,000.  
• Luxury home builder Cullum Homes and WOW Luxury Properties announced the development of their $75 million Palo Cristi Estate becoming Arizona’s most expensive home ever built. The 33,000-square-foot mansion will be replete with luxury amenities in the town Paradise Valley.

Luxury Homes in Scottsdale Need a Design Overhaul

These singular properties are setting a new standard for buyer expectations, however, as the demand for luxury properties outpaces supply, what’s left on the market are residences that need an infusion of interior design to be competitive in this market. That presents unique challenges and opportunities for luxury homeowners, investors, home builders, architects, interior designers, and realtors alike. 

Arizona’s award-winning power real estate agent couple Marilyn Cavanaugh and Jim Cavanaugh from The Agency, shared their insights on Arizona’s luxury housing market:

“Scottsdale has seen an 88% increase in ultra-high net wealth individuals since 2012. Current estimates show that 13,900 millionaires now call Scottsdale home. At least 60 are considered Centi-Millionaires with a net worth of over $100,000,000, while five are billionaires,” says Cavanaugh.  

Cavanaugh continues, “The Arizona market has rapidly become a global destination for luxury home buyers. Prices continue to rise in the luxury market as we see more out-of-state and global luxury buyers making Paradise Valley and Scottsdale their home. Not only are the prices getting higher, but the size of the homes is also getting larger.” 

A recent survey from TD Bank reflects this point regarding home buyer demand. According to the results, 71% of the participants were not looking for a dream home, instead, they’re shopping for one they can turn into their ideal residence. That’s where an experienced architectural detailing and interior design team comes in.

How Collaboration with Luxury Interior Designers Can Be the Solution

At IMI Design Studio, where we specialize in the luxury home market, we’ve seen this trend up close. We’ve been working with architects, builders and contractors as well as resellers and real estate agents to both incorporate designs into homes from the early architectural stages as well as redesign existing homes to better suit the market demand of discerning luxury home buyers. 

Anita Lang,  IMI Design Studio’s founder and principal designer, says, “When buyers become frustrated by lack of inventory, they often end up with a property that requires a good amount of work before it can be the home they envisioned, or it means even starting from ground up. This is when our team becomes critical to the overall success of their vision. 

Choosing an interior design team with pre-construction expertise is going to make those next steps much easier. Especially in these times of such labor and supply limitations, construction can be a bumpy road; experience and knowledge is needed to help avoid pitfalls. 

Drawing on our years of construction experience and passion for great design, we are the guardians of the vision for the client’s dream home. On their behalf, we are committed to ensuring the integrity of the design vision, the overall quality, and ultimately our clients happiness and satisfaction.” 

In our next blog, we’ll dive deeper into the steps and process specialty can help transform these luxury homes into perfect homes, turning these unique properties into dream homes.