In the market for a Montreal home? Here’s where you should be looking
You could say that Sotheby’s International Realty Québec is a victim of its own success.
As the oldest and bestknown auction house in the world, Sotheby’s first opened its doors in London in 1744 under the tutelage of its founder, Samuel Baker.
Currently, Sotheby’s annual worldwide sales are in excess of $4 billion and include: two retail businesses — Sotheby’s Diamonds and Sotheby’s Wine; an art financing company, Sotheby’s Financial Services, as well as an extensive museum network; not to mention 900 luxury real estate offices in 70 countries worldwide, including Canada.
“We’ve done so well with million-dollar-plus homes and executive properties that people forget that we don’t only deal with million-dollar-plus listings,” said Sacha Brosseau, the vice-president of brokerage for Sotheby’s International Realty Canada.
“In Quebec alone, 35 per cent of our inventory is under a million dollars.”
While Sotheby’s International Realty Québec does have a healthy real estate business in the Montreal neighbourhoods typically associated with luxury properties, such as Westmount, Outremont, TMR and Hampstead, it also does extremely well with mid-range homes and condos — ones that range from $300,000 to $750,000— in areas one might not typically associate with a name like Sotheby’s.
“The West Island is hot right now and we’ve really increased our sales in Hudson, Senneville, Kirkland, Beaconsfield and Île-Bizard,” said Brosseau. “I’m from the West Island myself, so I feel like it’s a great success story, personally.”
Sotheby’s International Realty Québec opened its West Island office on StJean Blvd. in Pointe-Claire in 2016, although the firm had been serving the area since 2007. It currently has around 35 properties listed in the area, which range from $355,000 all the way up to $4 million.
Other neighbourhoods currently popular with Sotheby’s clients — and where buyers and sellers of mid-range homes should be on the lookout, according to Brosseau — include Anjou, St-Henri, Griffintown, Montreal West, Brossard and Ville-Marie.
“One of the areas that we do a number of very successful transactions in that people don’t realize is Anjou,” he said. “We have an incredible agent that does phenomenal sales there, and they aren’t limited to million-dollar homes; just beautiful ones.”
The reasons behind Sotheby’s success in these neighbourhoods is simple, according to Brosseau, and can be attributed to two main factors: the strength of its brokers and the quality — and breadth — of its marketing.
“First and foremost, when you deal with Sotheby’s International Realty Québec, you’re going to work with a professional and that’s the most important thing,” he said. “A real estate transaction is a very sensitive matter and unless you have the right people making sure that it goes without a hitch, it can be a very unfortunate experience.” Other than its brokers, who are established agents with proven track records in the field, Sotheby’s is blessed with an extremely strong and talented marketing team, as well as a huge distribution network.
“In St-Henri and Griffintown, where most of the properties we deal with are condos, the average sales price is around $375,000,” he said. “We help those condos stand out because we understand the importance of properly showcasing a property and nothing gets promoted through the Sotheby’s International Realty Québec brand without professional photography.”
That’s because for Sotheby’s— and, by extension, Brosseau himself — luxury isn’t about how much a specific home or condominium costs or what neighbourhood it’s located in; it’s about the customer experience
In Quebec alone, 35 per cent of our inventory is under a million dollars.
and how the seller — or buyer — is guided through the entire process.
Luxury then, for Sotheby’s, is about quality over quantity.
“You’re never going to see a billboard boasting about the number of transactions we’ve done because of the volume of our agents,” Brosseau said. “We do, however, take great pride in the quality of the agents that we have, and making sure that the transactions they take care of are handled flawlessly.
“Our infamous line is that luxury is an experience, not a price point,” he continued. “If you’re dealing with a Sotheby’s International Realty agent anywhere in the country, you’ll receive the same service whether you’re selling a $300,000 property or a $20-million one.”
For more information, visit sothebysrealty.ca.