Pictures for new overseas property portal

It’s all in the image and how to find it, Cheryl Markosky discovers on a new overseas property portal

A picture is worth a thousand words’.  Never has this adage rung truer than when related to the hugely visual world of property. This explains why Charles Smith, the man behind freshly launched international property website PrimeNewDevelopments.com, has chosen a very picture-led approach.

“We want enough alluring photographs of homes for people to look at, but also to tease them so they’ll be desirous to find out more,” he says.

You’d expect no less from someone with 20 years property experience, the last 14 of which were with Sotheby’s International Realty in the UK. There he learned how to get the message out about wonderful products to discretionary buyers.

As well as displaying photographs of sleek, upper-scale developments to whet the appetites of those browsing the site, Smith has also come up with an innovative way to explore by placing the property in a triad of lifestyle groups.

“Anyone going onto PrimeNewDevelopments.com can choose between a city locale (metropolitan), a beachside place (sun and sand) or somewhere more daring perhaps up a mountain (sport and adventure),” he explains.

Other pluses include a more advanced search linked to a favourite location, saving your own cache of searches, viewing prices in a preferred currency and the currency of the developers, and maximum distance listings from the property to a specified airport or town.

This new palette of site benefits both the buyer and developer, suggests Smith.

“Buyers love being able to begin the process by thinking about how they live – do they want to be by the sea or in a ski-in ski-out Alpine lodge? - and then distilling their selections via the site.”

And developers appreciate getting responses in ‘real time’ from purchasers. “They don’t have to go through a third party that might not have the answers. They can say, ‘we don’t have any two-bedroom apartments left, but a three-bedroom place is being released when we kick off the last phase. Why not fly out this weekend and take a look?”

The financial model paints a pleasant scene too. Buyers register for free, alongside developers who can put up details about new schemes gratis. PrimeNewDevelopments.com operates on a no sale, no fee basis, which means no one pays any fees upfront.

Smith adds that while his inspired lifestyle categories and economic model are both getting accolades, he’s witnessing high-end purchasers shopping for property in other ways as well.

“When I was at Sotheby’s it wasn’t uncommon for four friends to club together and buy a £10 million painting or a private jet and then share it. Until now, this luxury fractional-style ownership idea wasn’t really working in real estate. But with quick property responses and developers getting leads immediately, it’s becoming reality.”

It’s early days for PrimeNewDevelopments.com, but already Smith’s building up a sound database of purchasers and developers. “It’s all about putting well-informed and wealthy people who know what they want in touch with the developer so they can speak to him right away.”

Now at a crossroads – “we have the right environment and the right products, so now we need to get the message out to more people,” argues Smith – the website will be rolled out in more languages.

Already listing some companies affiliated with the high-end property portal, such as Smith’s sister firm, London Real Estate Advisors, AIPP (the Association of International Property Professionals), and 3rd Home, an exclusive private club where members can share each other’s homes (rather than rent), more will be added to the canvas in the near future.

“It’s wonderful facilitating purchasers, who can communicate directly with developers that are passionate about what they’re building,” Smith sums up.

Just like Sotheby’s can tell a collector why he should be paying £1 million for a picture, PrimeNewDevelopments.com can complete the portrayal of an overseas property deal.

PRETTY AS A PICTURE  
How PrimeNewDevelopments.com looks from three easy angles
Choose one of three lifestyle groups:

• Metropolitan - city-slicker spots such as Venice’s Palazzo Molin del Cuoridoro, Museum House in Toronto, Singapore’s Ritz Carlton Residences and River Street Mews in Jane Austen’s Bath, UK.
• Sun and sand – anyone for prestigious One Sandy Lane in Barbados, The Residences at Dubrovnik Sun Gardens, Croatia; or Samujana at Koh Samui, Thailand?
• Sport and adventure – be audacious at Marbella’s Finca Cortesin, Vilnius Golf and Spa Resort in Lithuania, and Hamilton Grand’s Old Course Hotel Golf Resort and Spa at St Andrews in Scotland.

If you want, you can refine your search to a particular location, and even state a maximum distance from a particular airport or town.

To complete the picture, you’re put directly in touch with the developer or lead agent, who can answer your questions.