Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
Rich no longer resisting the urge to splurge
BURLINGTON — Even as many Americans still struggle to pay bills and find work, some consumers feel comfortable enough to finally indulge themselves this holiday season by making luxury purchases.
The willingness of the haves to loosen their purse strings was on display at a recent Long’s Jewelers party for select customers like Phyllis Schneider, who scooped up $5,000 in sapphire rings, bracelets, and earrings as a gift to herself. Yesterday, Tracy Campion replaced her 2007 BMW with a new 5 series model to shuttle her wealthy real estate clients.
Such examples represent just a sliver of the spending spectrum. But the demand for luxury products has provided a boost to high-end merchants. Many upscale retailers saw sharp declines in revenues during the recession of the past two years, when plummeting portfolios prompted more affluent consumers to temporarily swear off gems and fancy cars.
“Everybody is tired of worrying about the future and the economy,’’ said Andrea Sheehan, who bought a silver bangle at Long’s days after receiving a diamond ring from her husband, their first big jewelry splurge in two years.
Some national chains and independent merchants expect double-digit increases in jewelry sales for 2010, a dramatic turnaround from the 40 percent drops the hardest hit jewelers have experienced since 2008, according to retail analysts. Luxury car sales, meanwhile, are up nearly 12 percent this year, compared with a 5 percent bump across all vehicle categories, according to Ward’s Automotive Group, an auto research firm.
The heady days of conspicuous consumption that marked the middle of the last decade have not returned. But people of means are feeling less guilty about displaying their good fortune. And nothing better reflects the rebound of the luxury market than jewelry, considered by many to be the ultimate symbol of discretionary spending.
“Last Christmas was a disaster for most jewelry retailers. 2010 is the year of recovery and the year of hope,’’ said Michael J. Silverstein, a senior partner at the Boston Consulting Group in Chicago. “Many households with incomes above $100,000 don’t believe the sky is falling anymore. And when they don’t believe the sky is falling anymore, they want things.’’
That desire is translating into some serious spending. Tiffany & Co. projects sales to increase 10 percent this year, and diamond seller Blue Nile estimates a jump of as much as 12 percent this quarter.
One indicator of renewed bling lust is the share of shoppers who purchased jewelry over the Black Friday weekend after Thanksgiving. The percentage rose substantially, from 11.7 percent in 2009 to 14.3 percent this year, according to the National Retail Federation, a Washington, D.C., trade group. Jewelers say business is still off from prerecession highs, but for the first time they are optimistic that they can make up some of their losses.
To satisfy the pent-up demand, merchants are pushing flashy new products and high-profile offerings, such as a 20-carat emerald cut diamond that Shreve, Crump & Low hopes to sell for $1 million by the end of the year. The Boston jeweler upgraded last week’s annual holiday party by plying customers with caviar along with the usual champagne. Several shoppers at the event bought items that cost more than $100,000, including an 8-carat canary diamond, a 5-carat emerald cut-diamond, and a rare strand of Tahitian pearls.
The fete was cohosted by Lexus of Watertown as part of a holiday partnership that offers every customer who buys or leases a new Lexus a Shreve, Crump & Low gift card worth between $200 and $1,000. People are always looking for value, even if they are luxury-goods shoppers seeking to unleash their urge to indulge.
“Consumers have battled economic forces for the last couple of years and they are really ready to let loose and open their purses,’’ said David Walker, chief executive of Shreve, Crump & Low, which is expecting revenues to jump 30 percent this year after struggling with declines of up to 15 percent over the past two years.
At Herb Chambers car dealerships, the luxury vehicle business is also up about 30 percent over 2009. The company expects to sell six or seven Bentleys in December; over the past 18 months, it averaged one a month. The British-made cars range in price from $190,000 to $300,000.
Campion, who is leasing her new BMW from Herb Chambers in Boston, said she feels comfortable acquiring a fancy set of wheels. She said revenue at her residential real estate business, which deals in homes starting at about $1 million, soared 30 percent this year to $221 million in sales.
“I am rewarding myself with a nice car,’’ Campion said. “The car I drive is a reflection of my business. It’s important.’’
Selling a subdivision this year helped bring Tom Zocco back to the jewelry market. He recently treated his girlfriend to two necklaces at Shreve’s and then bought more trinkets for his children at Kay Jewelers.
“Certainly we’ve held off for the last couple of years. But I feel a little better now about the economy and the way things are going,’’ Zocco said.
Some retailers are expanding their collection of high-priced jewelry as a way to drive sales, a move that would have been almost unthinkable in the last couple of years. At LuxCouture in Newton, which used to focus on expensive handbags, owner Sari Brown has increased her jewelry selection by 50 percent. She quickly sold a batch of diamond pendants from a Lebanese designer that cost between $1,400 and $3,000, as well as $3,500 stretch bracelets with diamonds and other assorted stones.
Craig Rottenberg, president of Long’s Jewelers, introduced two upscale designers for the holiday season to cater to the growing demand for jewels. It’s already paying off: The average spending by customers is up by about 20 percent this year.
At the recent holiday party, consumers fawned over several rare sapphire pieces from Israeli designer Yvel that cost more than $100,000.
“I’m tired of feeling like it’s not OK to enjoy yourself,’’ said Kendra Lebwohl, as she tried one on of Yvel’s pricey black Tahitian pearl creations.
Dayle Goldstein spent the evening wearing a $195,000 diamond necklace and $145,000 diamond chandelier earrings from the other new Ivanka Trump line. Staff describe the merchandise as “heirloom chic.’’
Goldstein, whose last big splurge was a Cartier Roadster watch in 2007, didn’t pull the trigger, but left with words of optimism and a hint.
“I deserve them,’’ Goldstein said. “And Christmas is right around the corner.’’
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Home Modifications for Boomers Are Booming
A survey by AARP earlier this year found that 33 percent of adults older than 45 have modified their homes to allow them to age comfortably in place.
Aging-in-place modifications can include:
· Decorative grab bars in showers
· Step-free entrances
· Levered door handles
· Raised electrical outlets
· Bathrooms that can accommodate wheelchairs
· Widened doorways to accommodate walkers
· Higher toilets
Mike Leary, founder of Rochester, N.Y., firm Access Lifts & Ramps, says business is brisk and he expects it to continue to grow. "If my kids stay in the business, they'll be the ones to make out well," Leary says. "They'll be taking care of me. I'm in the middle of the Baby Boomers."
Source: USA Today, Matthew Daneman (12/21/2010)
Aging-in-place modifications can include:
· Decorative grab bars in showers
· Step-free entrances
· Levered door handles
· Raised electrical outlets
· Bathrooms that can accommodate wheelchairs
· Widened doorways to accommodate walkers
· Higher toilets
Mike Leary, founder of Rochester, N.Y., firm Access Lifts & Ramps, says business is brisk and he expects it to continue to grow. "If my kids stay in the business, they'll be the ones to make out well," Leary says. "They'll be taking care of me. I'm in the middle of the Baby Boomers."
Source: USA Today, Matthew Daneman (12/21/2010)
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Monday, December 20, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
2010 Homebuyer Survey
One of the most useful research projects of the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) is the annual survey of homebuyers and sellers. The 2010 version (Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2010) became available in November of this year.
The information is based on answers to an eight-page questionnaire mailed to 111,000 consumers who purchased a home between July 2009 and June 2010. (Names and addresses were provided by Experian, a company that maintains an extensive database of recent homebuyers that is derived from county records.) There was a 7.9 percent response rate.
In 2010, first-time homebuyers constituted 50 percent of the market. That is a huge portion. There are a number of factors to explain this increase, one of which is that first-time buyers don’t have to sell a home before they can buy. Moreover, prices have been dropping while interest rates remain low by historical standards. Especially, government policies such as tax credits have played a major role.
Only four percent of buyers purchased a home that had been foreclosed or that was in the process of foreclosure. That is actually lower than a couple of years ago. In 2010 a full 39 percent of buyers did not even consider buying a home in foreclosure. Of those who did consider making such a purchase, but did not ultimately do so, the primary reason (26%) was that they simply could not find a home that was right for them. Nineteen percent did not purchase a foreclosure home because the process was too difficult or complex. Another seventeen percent did not buy because the house was in poor condition.
Certainly the most useful information for sellers and their agents is to be found in the section on the home search process. While the survey results are not significantly different from those of recent years, the trends continue. For example, this year 74 percent of buyers said that they used the internet frequently during the search process, about the same as 76% last year. In 2003 that number was 42%.
Thirty-six per cent of buyers went to the internet as the first step in the home search process. 19 % contacted a real estate agent first, and 7% began by driving through neighborhoods looking for homes for sale.
Buyers use multiple sources of information in the process of looking for a home. Far and away the most used sources are the internet (89%) and real estate agents (88%). What is the third most used information source? Yard signs (57%).
Multiple Listing Service (MLS) websites were the primary source of information for buyers who used the internet in their search process. 59 percent of those buyers went to MLS sites. Of course, many went to a variety of different sites. 45 percent used Realtor®.com, 43% went to real estate company websites, and 42% went to sites hosted by individual agents. Aggregators such as Zillow, Homegain, and Yahoo were visited by 41% of buyers.
While there is a lot of intriguing information about the sources of information used by prospective homebuyers, certainly the most relevant has to do with where they actually found the home that they ultimately purchased. It is still the case that, more than any other source, a real estate agent is responsible for informing the buyer about the home that is ultimately purchased. That is how 38 percent of buyers found their home.
But the internet is a very close second (37%). Moreover, the differences in less than a decade are fascinating. In 2001, 48 percent of buyers learned about their home through a real estate agent, and only 8 percent found their home on the internet. The times they have changed.
Some things though, remain persistently the same – or close to it. In 2001, a yard sign was the third most likely source of information leading to the home that was purchased (15%). And this year? It is still the third leading source at 11%. Print media may not be dead, but it has shrunk to insignificance in this arena. In 2001, 7% found the home they purchased through a newspaper ad; in 2010 it was 2%. Fewer than 1% found their home through a home book or magazine.
The 2008 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers shows what works. It is a valuable resource.
Published: November 30, 2010
By: Bob Hunt
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
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