Niche markets make some noise: $50 million in global sales
From Lake Como to Lake Keowee, Texas to Toorak, and beyond, these corners of the globe have attracted headline-making sales in 2025.
Contemporary architecture is a rare sight along the storied shores of Lake Como, rendering each avant-garde find a coveted trophy for those with a discerning eye. (Majeli Vassart Properties)
Italy: Como’s modern moment
Lake Como. A region shaped by centuries of aristocratic elegance and sumptuous villas. Yet with Milan’s modern influence just an hour away, new-age designs are quietly gaining ground along these storied shores. Consider Villa Lloyd a newly sold minimalist retreat in the hillside town of Como. The property trades ornamental flourishes for clean lines and expansive windows, unveiling panoramic views of both the lake and the distant skyline of Milan. “The villa stands where historic villas dominate yet it looks toward the skyscrapers of Italy’s most contemporary city,” says co-listing agent Virginie Vassart of Majeli Vassart Properties.
It’s a striking contrast to the area’s traditional grandeur. Does this signal a broader shift? Perhaps. Some buyers still covet Como’s time-honored estates but as Villa Lloyd’s sale proves others crave a fresh aesthetic that reflects stylish urban influences.
Regardless of style preferences, Vassart says Lake Como home-seekers often share one defining desire: discretion. “Our buyer, who spent a long time searching for a premier property, made privacy a top priority and wanted ironclad confidence that it would be safeguarded.”
A swift closing in Piney Point Village underscores Houston’s enduring fascination with roomy estates. (Baker & Co.)
Texas: A lightning sale in Piney Point Village
Last year Houston’s real estate clock ticked faster than the national average, with the median listing lasting just 43 days before going under contract. But in Greater Houston’s wealthiest suburb, Piney Point Village, things moved even faster. A seven-bedroom Colonial here secured multiple offers within 24 hours before being taken off the market the next day, the lowest days on market for the neighborhood. “We went live on the market and in one day we received seven offers – ultimately selling for $3.12 million or $270,000 over the asking price,” says listing agent Jaime Baker of Baker & Co.
Such fervor may be surprising for a 4,600-square-foot home that is, in many ways, typical for the area. Then again, typical in Piney Point Village means a sprawling lot, towering trees and easy city-center access. The suburb stands as a part of Houston’s Memorial Villages – a cluster of six independent cities east of the Loop – renowned for grand homes and strong community bonds. Tally another record for a neighborhood already counted among Texas’s most coveted addresses.
Upstate South Carolina’s lake district has rapidly ascended into an elite market, drawing discerning investors to its scenic waters and luxury hideaways. (Justin Winters & Associates)
South Carolina: A new benchmark upstate
South Carolina’s reputation as a magnet for movers has soared since the pandemic, placing it fifth in U.S. population growth last year. While Charleston and Columbia catch most of the headlines, the quieter shores of Lake Keowee – tucked in the Appalachian foothills – have steadily lured buyers seeking an adventuresome yet relaxed retreat. The secret seems to be out. A newly built seven-bedroom lakefront home in Sunset, a small unincorporated community on the eastern end of Keowee, just fetched $10.1 million, edging out the previous $10 million sale high set earlier this year.
Located within the gated Reserve at Lake Keowee, the residence is no chintzy lakeside cabin. Dramatic wood-beamed ceilings, walls of windows and a peninsular lot that offers panoramic lake views elevate this home into the luxury echelon. Justin Winter of Justin Winter & Associates, who repped the seller, knows record-breaking deals on this stretch – last year he closed another headline-making $8 million sale mere doors down. With a string of big-ticket transactions in recent months, upstate South Carolina’s once-overlooked waterfront is now firmly on the luxury radar.
Melbourne’s most prestigious enclave tallies yet another remarkable transaction, further burnishing its reputation for head-turning real estate triumphs. (Private Property Global)
Australia: Toorak’s enduring prestige
In nearly every global metropolis a single enclave becomes shorthand for opulence. In Melbourne that’s Toorak, and within the boundaries of this prestigious neighborhood, St. Georges Road has collected some of the most desirable addresses. Properties on this green and pleasant bend of road often command over AUD $30 million. Case in point: a mansion at No. 27 spanning around 2,100 square meters recently changed hands – and quickly. In a neighborhood already known for expansive estates, finding a landholding of this scale on St. Georges Road is increasingly rare, says Robert Fletcher of Private Property Global, who co-managed the sale, which wrapped up in two weeks after launch.
On the approach, ivy and Italianate shutters evoke classic European grandeur. Inside, parquet floors, sweeping staircases and whitewashed French doors do that job. For some buyers, these classic bones might signal a grand restoration; for others they’re an elegant blank canvas with endless potential. Either way, the location alone has made No. 27 a trophy in Melbourne’s toniest quarter.
A-listers anchor themselves in Montecito, a serene coastal sanctuary offering privacy for the famous – though star-studded transactions still reach headlines. (Blake Bronstad)
California: Celebrity sales in Montecito
Over the past four years, A-list entertainment couple Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi embarked on a flurry of real estate deals in the Santa Barbara area snapping up a $49 million compound, a $14.3 million ranch and a small 1950s cottage near Montecito’s Butterfly Beach. Now the former talk show host and actress have sold all three, most recently offloading their 1,700-square-foot bungalow for $5.2 million – just days after listing it at under $5 million. It’s a tidy leap, given the home went for $2.3 million more than they paid roughly four years ago. Representing DeGeneres and de Rossi was Riskin Partners Estate Group of Village Properties.
Though the couple nearly doubled their original purchasing price, the $5.2 million sale was well below Montecito’s 2025 average sale price of $8.33 million. In January alone, six deals surpassed the $10 million mark, with four closing at or above $20 million. An impressive showing for a month typically known for subdued activity. But in Montecito, it appears the sun keeps shining.
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