In the Google age, human Realtors are increasingly important: Opinion
Real estate is the most powerful asset to creating wealth and stability.
When I am asked about real estate in 2020 and the future, I recall the advice of my maternal grandmother. She developed residential houses in the 1940s and ’50s in her native Peru. Grandmother Alicia would say, “Buy in the best location that you can afford, sell only if you are going to reinvest in real estate, and hold as much of your real estate as possible.”
She had never been to college, but her sound advice resonates today. I remember her telling me, “A woman is wealthy when she owns her home.” In the 1970s, she diversified her holdings by buying in Miami, insuring herself a safety net by having assets in the United States.
I often share her words of wisdom, which invigorate the predictions below (and are entirely my own).
1. Shifting trends in home-ownership will yield new product offerings.
As globalization affects family structure and the mobility of today’s families, the decades-long ownership of the family home will become less prevalent. Millennials are getting married later in life and often putting off their first residential purchase. This trend has created a need for more rental housing units. Forward-thinking developers are meeting their demands by providing housing to meet the fast-paced millennial lifestyle.
In an age where your meals, groceries and an increasing amount of your purchases arrive at your doorstep, developers are providing larger package rooms that often include refrigeration areas. Newer apartments tend to have less square footage as socializing outside the home continues to grow.
Neighborhoods that provide restaurants and shops within walking distance are a big attraction. Increased demand for multi-family housing in urban settings will be a recurring theme throughout the decade.
Home-sharing has become universally mainstream, with the Miami area among the top-ranking destinations for the travel sector. In response, developers are introducing new product types that cater to this niche — where homeowners will be able to rent on a short-term basis. These units tend to be smaller than the traditional rental unit, thus having a lower starting price point.
2. Miami will continue maturing
Today, the focus on a healthy lifestyle and recreation favors cities like Miami that are light on industry and heavy in the service sector. A beautiful, clean city, high quality of air, mild climate, and a privileged geographic location all add to the attraction Miami offers.
South Florida’s universities continue to flourish, bringing students from around the country and the world. In 2019, U.S. News & World Report once again ranked Florida first in the United States for higher education and second for “best states for college costs.” We are home to Florida International University, now the fourth-largest public university in the country. We can be proud of our medical facilities, which attract top talent and are leaders in several specialties.
These advancements in the quality of education and healthcare, combined with a proliferation of museums and cultural institutions, reflect a city that has matured while at the same time has the excitement of being young.
The Miami area enters the new decade ranked as the “No. 1 fastest-growing luxury real estate market in the United States” and“No. 5 fastest-growing luxury real estate market in the world,” according to the 2019 Wealth Report by Knight Frank. As the world’s wealthy elite increasingly turn their eyes to Miami real estate, so are major brands and leading global “starchitects” such as Arquitectonica, Bjarke Engels, Richard Meier, and Zaha Hadid. There is also an exciting trend of associating internationally recognized luxury automobile and fashion brands with real estate developments — another arena in which Miami has been a pioneer.
3. Real estate professionals will become even more important in the age of Google.
As an avid user of Google, having extensive amounts of information at my fingertips is both entertaining and educational. Increasingly, the use of the internet is the first step for home buyers and renters in identifying properties of interest.
The internet is a fabulous tool when combined with a human. Thus, when we Google an ache or pain that is of any serious consequence, we follow it up with a call to our doctor.
Similarly, to protect their financial health, buyers and sellers will continue to seek the advice of real estate professionals when making what is often the largest purchase of their lives.
Fundamentally, the role of the real estate agent in 2020 has not changed due to the internet. If anything, the Realtor’s role becomes more important as there is an abundance of information to review and validate. Experience, knowledge, and integrity makes a great professional. Listening, understanding, patience and interpretation of both customer and offering are still human services that a computer cannot provide.
Miami is a city that reigns as a growing luxury destination for real estate, often leading in design and creating lifestyle that sets world trends.
As we enter a new decade, we will see an increase in the residential activity to address housing needs for various income levels. It is encouraging for our city to see extensive activity in the workforce-housing sector. I believe that Miami, with its resilience and innovative spirit, will continue to address the diverse needs of its residents.
To close on a personal note:
I love Miami as the city of my youth that welcomed my family with open arms. A place that people like to call home. I go from my grandmother to my mother, who in the 1960s had a vision that this city would go vertical — a vision that came to pass!
The best is yet to come for Miami as its future remains bright. Happily, I now see the children who grew up here and went away to college are now returning to the city of their birth. What better endorsement is there?
Master Brokers Forum member Veronica Cervera Goeseke is the CEO and principal of Cervera Real Estate.
This story was originally published February 10, 2020 at 7:00 AM.