By Catherine Reagor | Arizona Republic
Metro Phoenix’s luxury home sales are not slowing as much as the rest of the housing market.
That’s not typical. Often the million-dollar housing market slows first, with any bumps in the stock market and emerging concerns over a potential recession.
Valley million-dollar home sales were down about 37% in November, compared to the same month in 2021, according to the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service. Overall, Phoenix-area home sales were down 45% in November.
And prices for the priciest homes are still climbing.
Robert Joffe of Launch Real Estate said while some markets have slowed as higher interest rates have peaked — San Francisco, Austin and others — the luxury market in metro Phoenix is still “hot.”
“Buyers of high-end luxury estates aren’t so much concerned about interest rates as they are of the value and the opportunities in our high-end enclaves,” said the veteran of high-end Valley home sales.
Mortgage interest rates jumped in 2022 from 3.2% in January to 6.3% in late December. That slowed the housing market the most for houses priced below $1 million.
But many million-dollar home buyers in the Valley pay cash, so they don’t need mortgages and often are selling houses for more in pricier parts of the U.S.
