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BUSINESS Thursday 11 May 2017
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Christie’s: Global sales of luxury homes cooled in 2016

By ALEX VEIGA chief executive. “You saw climbed 20 percent in Eu- dex of top luxury property gauge of the hottest luxury
AP Business Writer the $100-million mark be rope and 44 percent in markets with sales that in- markets, or those where the
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Glob- crossed for the first time in Canada. cluded four homes that pace of sales was stron-
al luxury home sales cooled China, which you would Another sign that luxury sold for more than $100 mil- gest, reflecting heightened
off in 2016 for the second not have predicted, cer- home sales cooled last lion each. The city now has demand. Its luxury home
consecutive year, even tainly before 1978.”
with a record number of The luxury brokerage based
homes selling for more than its report on an analysis of
$100 million. sales data and other fac-
A report released Wednes- tors for homes that sold for
day by Christie’s Interna- $1 million or more in 101
tional Real Estate shows markets worldwide. Private
that sales of homes priced luxury home sales were not
at $1 million or more edged included in the analysis.
up about 1 percent world- Twenty-four of the markets
wide last year. in the report posted a sharp
That represents a sharp drop in sales last year, while
slowdown from 2015, when another 19 posted solid
luxury home sales climbed gains. Sales were essentially
8 percent, and from 2014, flat in the rest.
when sales vaulted 16 per- Even as the global econo-
cent. my strengthened and stock
Despite the sluggish sales markets climbed to new
growth, Christie’s says lux- highs, sales were likely held
ury home prices continued back as wealthy buyers
to rise last year, increas- and sellers opted to take
ing about 2 percent from wait-and-see approach
a year earlier. And for the to the geopolitical uncer-
first time, 10 homes sold tainty that shaped much This photo shows an area of the grounds at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles. The Playboy Man-
for more than $100 million of 2016, including Britain’s sion was among the priciest homes to sell in 2016. Global luxury home sales cooled off in 2016 for
each. vote to leave the European the second year in a row, even as a record number of homes sold for more than $100 million, a
The priciest sale, a mansion Union, new restrictions on new report shows.
located in The Peak neigh- Chinese capital outflows, (Photo by John Salangsang/Invision/AP)
borhood in Hong Kong, the U.S. presidential elec-
fetched more than $270 tion and Russian sanctions. year: Homes took longer the most homes for sale at sales were nearly double
million. “If you look at some of the to sell than in 2015. Luxury $20 million or higher. what they were in 2015.
The Playboy Mansion was markets where there was homes spent an average London, which had always Low inventory and price
also among the priciest uncertainty, it had an im- of 220 days on the market held the top spot, slipped increases spurred urgency
homes to sell last year, pact,” Conn said. “People before they sold, Christie’s to second, followed by among buyers.
bringing in $105 million. could afford to wait in the said. New York, Los Angeles and Luxury homes in Toronto
The home, which is locat- U.K. because there was un- That’s up 13 percent from Singapore. took an average of 17 days
ed on a 5-acre estate in certainty and prices have 195 days in 2015. Sales prices rose in more to sell last year, down from
Los Angeles where count- softened over the last cou- Growth in new luxury con- than half of the markets in 28 days the year before.
less celebrity-laden parties ple of years.” dos and other high-end Christie’s report. Toronto That was the fastest sales
have raged, was originally Luxury home sales sank 67 properties took out some of posted the biggest gain, 20 pace of any market.
bought in 1971 by Hugh He- percent in the U.K. from the urgency among buyers percent. Prices were flat in Rounding out the top five
fner for $1.05 million. a year earlier, while sales in markets like Miami. 26 percent of the markets. hottest luxury markets are
“The surprise in 2016 is slipped 4 percent in the Too much inventory and Another 21 percent of the Victoria, British Columbia;
the number of $100 mil- U.S. and slid 29 percent in sluggish sales wasn’t a markets posted declines in San Francisco; Austin, Tex-
lion-plus homes sold,” markets in the Asia-Pacific problem in Hong Kong, prices. as; and, Charleston, South
said Dan Conn, Christie’s region. In contrast, sales which topped Christie’s in- Toronto led a separate Carolina. q

Whole Foods shakes up board as key sales figure falls again

NEW YORK (AP) — Whole ers increasingly turning to tivist investor Jana Partners has in the United States, turn positive by the end of
Foods announced a board “good enough alterna- disclosed a stake in Whole Canada and the United its fiscal 2018.
shake-up and cost-cutting tives.” Overall competi- Foods last month and out- Kingdom. For this fiscal year, it still ex-
plan Wednesday as it fights tion is also intensifying, with lined an array of issues it “Over the past 38 years, pects sales to fall as much
to hold onto shoppers who more places where people wanted to discuss with the Whole Foods Market has as 2.5 percent at estab-
have more choices about can get groceries. Austin, Texas-based com- played a leadership role in lished locations.
where to buy the natu- Whole Foods named five pany. Whole Foods shares fresh, healthy, natural, and For its fiscal second quarter,
ral and organic foods the new independent direc- rose 2 percent to $37.00 organic foods becoming Whole Foods Market Inc.
chain is known for. tors to its board, including in after-hours trading.As mainstream,” CEO and co- said its profit fell to $99 mil-
The company also said Panera CEO Ron Shaich, as sales have slumped, Whole founder John Mackey told lion, or 31 cents per share.
sales fell 2.8 percent at es- well as a new board chair Foods executives have analysts at the time. “Now Not including one-time
tablished locations for the and new chief financial of- tried to highlight what dis- that we have, we must re- items, it earned 37 cents
three months that ended ficer. It also announced a tinguishes their chain from visit the question of how to per share, which was in line
April 9, the seventh straight range of moves aimed at rivals. Then in February, the best serve all of our stake- with Wall Street expecta-
quarter in which the closely improving its financial re- company said it no longer holders.” tions, according to Zacks
watched metric has de- sults, including plans to cut sees the potential for ex- On Wednesday, Whole Investment Research. Total
clined. $300 million in costs by its fis- panding its flagship chain Foods said it expects its var- revenue was $3.74 billion,
Whole Foods has blamed cal 2020. to 1,200 locations, up from ious initiatives to help sales above the $3.73 billion an-
its struggles on custom- The moves come after ac- the approximately 470 it at established locations alysts expected.q