PAOLA MARULANDA: A Leading Agent of Luxury Real Estate in Miami | VISION + STRATEGY IS KEY

A clear vision combined with aggressive strategy is the optimal formula to serve the huge influx of wealth pouring into Miami’s luxury and ultra-luxury real estate space. 

Paola Marulanda, Founder and CEO of Luxury Homes Connect, is an award-winning and record-breaking real estate agent in Miami, Florida. Despite being only 30 years old, she has managed to consistently rank as a top producing realtor for ONE Sotheby’s International Realty, a global leader in luxury real estate and the #1 firm in South Florida (by sales volume). Paola shares with us that her key to success for selling multi-million-dollar properties is optimization through curated strategy. Something she describes as “the art of identifying and analyzing the most valuable aspects of each deal and leveraging those with a creative vision and dedicated strategies.”  

Marketing is everything. As Paola explains, “Whether you are representing a seller or a buyer, it all comes down to your expertise in marketing, and the most fundamental part of marketing is the strategy behind it.” Paola feels that it’s all about positioning yourself and each property to the right people, in the right way. She states, “Your marketing efforts could be going to waste if you don’t have a thorough understanding of your market, the people you are targeting or serving, and in Miami’s case, the global economy which dictates who is buying and who is selling.” Miami’s luxury buyers were once predominantly international, especially Latin Americans. “Today due to political and economic crises hindering these countries they are no longer the buyers you want to mainly target, but they are definitely great candidates for selling. Due to recent tax laws offering great incentives to buy in Florida, our new hot market of buyers is compromised mostly of Americans from high tax states. Nonetheless, economic climates quickly change and often. The recent devaluation of the Mexican peso put Mexican clients back on the map making them excellent candidates to purchase in Miami which is a short flight away. Conditions are constantly changing and Miami being controlled by such a diverse population means you can’t rely on generic marketing and cross your fingers to sell a property. Dynamic strategy is key.” 

On the topic of relationship strategies Paola notes that “if you don’t have a good handle on mastering relationships, then your clients, your business, and ultimately you, will suffer.” Paola explains how fragile deals can be and how quickly bad attitudes and conflictive personalities can generate mistrust and sink a deal. “If you don’t know how to manage people’s emotions, diffuse egos, or at least neutralize drama then you are not optimizing the negotiation” she says. 

Born and raised in sunny Miami, Paola understands the hype of owning a property in South Florida. When asked why Miami was such an iconic city Paola describes that “Miami is unique in that it offers something to everyone. In addition to year-round sunshine, world-renowned nightlife, top shopping and dining experiences, Miami’s art, culture, and wellness scene has also exploded, inviting more sophisticated and comprehensive lifestyles now than ever, which pairs VERY nicely with the financial incentives presented by 2018 tax reform.”

In early 2018, new laws came into effect that eliminated the individual state income tax in Florida making Miami an increasingly attractive home base for America’s wealthiest families, companies, and individuals. “We are now experiencing a massive influx of wealth from Americans who live in high tax-paying states such as California, New York, and Chicago. Suddenly all of my international clients are either paralyzed by uncertainty or in desperate need to sell, and an unprecedented majority of buyers are American.” Americans are now part of a new and exciting market for Miami which was previously accustomed to serving a melting-pot of residents. 

As for luxury real estate, “The demand for high-end properties is at an all-time high. Miami has never experienced the level of affluence here right now. Once upon a time a $20 million home sold two or three times a year in Miami. Now they are selling monthly. The $10-$20 million range is also booming, which makes perfect sense since the people experiencing the greatest financial relief by buying here are those with $10 million plus in assets,” says Paola. “Analyzing the people, the market, and the global economy allows your vision to become clearer and more accurate, paving the way for creative strategies to flourish and optimizing the way you appeal to the right buyers and sellers.”

Paola’s vision for Miami real estate: “Miami’s future looks bright as the migration of America’s top moneymakers makes its way to our enticing tax haven and brings with it not only CEOs but also C-level executives, managers, and so on down the line, eventually invigorating every asset-class.”

You can follow Paola on Instagram.com/PaolaMarulanda_Miami for more on Miami Luxury Real Estate and market updates.