The sale of the most outstanding property to have been built in recent years in the Marbella area is a cause for celebration for the Marbella property market as a whole.
Article by Vivion O’Kelly
Sometimes the best is not the best-selling. Sometimes bold and innovative risk-taking is not rewarded as it should be. And sometimes it is. The sale of the most outstanding property to have been built in recent years in the Marbella area is thus both a cause for celebration within the entire Costa del Sol property community and a welcome sign that, come what may, Marbella remains one of the top destinations in Europe for luxury property development.
The property in question is Villa Alcuzcuz, an amazing tour de force of architecture, technology, environmental excellence and interior design. This multi-award winning villa, designed by UDesign and developed by BRIGHT, was the recipient of Best Architecture in Spain and Best Architecture in Europe awards from the International Property Awards, and is Marbella’s first Passive House, which is the world’s most sought-after standard in energy efficient construction, quality and comfort, guaranteeing up to 75 percent saving on energy costs compared to a standard build.
The 1,323 square metre Villa Alcuzcuz also creates new standards in luxury, redefining the concept of easy living in a world that is becoming increasingly more complex to live in. It is situated in Reserva de Alcuzcuz, an exclusive residential area between La Quinta, Los Arqueros and La Zagaleta golf courses, only five minutes from the coast and ten minutes from Marbella. This location, high over the coast with spectacular views from almost every room in the house, makes for the perfect blend of privacy and convenience, and with Malaga Airport within close driving distance, it offers quick and easy access to the rest of Europe.
The villa itself is filled with quality designer furniture, fixtures and fittings, much of it made by UDesign, while the basic philosophy of its architects was to build from the inside out, blurring the line between the exterior and interior. Its advanced domotic system is comprehensive, with all lighting, safety and climate systems intelligently controlled, and its entertainment space has been designed and fitted to exceptionally high standards.
As Sebastian Jiménez, CEO of Aqua Estates, responsible for the sale of the property, says: “Villa Alcuzcuz impressed me greatly when we first presented it. I’ve seen an awful lot of luxury villas but this was really unique, and I’ve never seen anything quite like it before. I was fully behind it from the beginning and knew it would be perfect for our client, whom we had been working with for a while. As the client wasn’t in Spain, and couldn’t come, we organised virtual tours, drone footage and in the end the purchase was made without his having ever physically visited the property.”
In a wider context, this important sale confirms recent property trends on the Costa del Sol. Demand for high-end properties in the area has been increasing steadily over the past year, despite the Covid-19 crisis, prompting more and more people to think of the beautiful climate and lifestyle of Marbella when considering the purchase of a luxury villa. An article in the Guardian newspaper last year comments on foreign properties in general, but hones in on Spain from the beginning, and specifically the Costa del Sol, pointing out that searches for properties in Spain as a whole were up 34 percent year on year in the spring of 2020, more than in popular areas of France such as the Dordogne and Brittany. They mention that the most popular searches for Spanish property focused on five areas, the Costa del Sol being one of them, and pinpoint Marbella as a prime destination.
Although official figures probably fall short of reality, Marbella is home to at least 100,000 foreign residents, full or part-time, and many of them are quite wealthy. The on-going health crisis has shown that a large number of people of high financial worth are keen to move out of the big cities and into less populated areas, and with its long tradition of welcoming English-speaking and Northern European residents, and its magnificent climate, Marbella is well placed to benefit from this trend.
The reasons they will continue to choose the Marbella area are two-fold, the first being lifestyle and the second being investment potential. Lifestyle is a lot more than a villa in the sun; it is many things to many different people, but in these exceptional times, it is a safe environment in natural surroundings reasonably close to essential services. It is also the ability to work from home, even if one’s business base is located elsewhere in the world. We have no clear idea yet of what the future of the workplace will look like, but it appears more likely than not that more and more of us will want to work where we live or live where we work, depending on priorities. The one thing we can be certain of is that things will never be the same again in a post-Covid world, and we must arrange our lifestyles accordingly. One of these arrangements must be to invest wisely.
An investment in a luxury, environmentally sustainable property in the Marbella area is as much a guarantee as is possible to give that its market value will substantially increase over the long term, and this makes it an investment in one’s own peace of mind. And peace of mind is a commodity that will continue to rise in value as the years pass by.
Sebastian Jiménez expressed his gratitude for the help he received from the BRIGHT team in successfully marketing Villa Alcuzcuz. “We could not have done it though without the help from BRIGHT. The whole team were super supportive throughout the whole process and anything we needed we had. And now we’re looking towards Vista Lago Residences, BRIGHT’s new development, another great project. In fact, we already have three potential clients for this who are planning to visit before April.”
A bright future for BRIGHT, and by extension, for all other luxury property developers in this privileged part of Spain.