High-end luxury properties, like the kind that German brokerage Engel & Völkers is known for selling around the world, cater to a certain type of buyer — a buyer who may prefer to purchase through an auction website rather than a straight-up brokerage or listing website.
So it makes sense that earlier this week, Engel & Völkers announced that its Americas division was partnering with Concierge Auctions, the lux property marketplace, to make Concierge the “preferred auction provider” for Engel & Völkers Americas properties.
“We entered into this partnership because the selling of high-end real estate often requires diverse strategies and multifaceted approaches to meet the needs of our clients,” stated Anthony Hitt, president and CEO, Engel & Völkers Americas.
“Many of our Engel & Völkers advisers have worked with Concierge Auctions on the successful sales of properties, and this is a natural extension of that collaboration.”
To be clear, Engel & Völkers previously worked with Concierge to sell multi-millions in luxury properties throughout the U.S. in Canada. But the new partnership further solidifies their business alliance and will likely see more Engel & Völkers listings appear on Concierge, if sellers and agents agree to place them there.
Concierge will go ahead and cover all of the marketing costs for an Engel & Völkers property that is put up for auction on its platform. However, Engel & Völkers can continue to list and market the property on its own websites and channels as well.
“This is a tool to expand the market and create a very visible platform for these properties,” said Laura Brady, founder and president of Concierge, in a phone interview with Inman. “Most sellers choose us so we can expand the buyer pool.”
Brady also emphasized that Concierge will continue to work “with all brokerage firms” and is not exclusive to any one company.