I had the pleasure of speaking with real estate agent, Ruben Marcela, who told me that “Marcela Properties was started by my father in 1995 and is still growing today, covering Lagos, Vila do Bispo and Aljezur”.

Their vast expertise and the fact that the high-end market has been growing rapidly in the Algarve, saw them decide to expand and they opened an additional real estate agency called Marcela Premium in mid-September, which specialises in high end properties in the Algarve market. Marcela Premium’s office is located in Lagos Marina, where they specialise in the luxury segment, offering clients a high quality and personalised service with confidence.

Ruben Marcela is responsible for Marcela Premium and developed the segment, and he affirms “that together with my friendly and dedicated team we will meet the demand of the high end market.”

Ruben Marcela explained: “Marcela Premium benefits from all the experience and knowledge that Marcela Properties has but they come with an enhanced communication strategy focusing on providing exclusive properties in the Lagos, Luz and Portimão areas.

“We are unique because a lot of people are inclined to work with an agency that is focused only on one segment, such as premium properties, and there are not that many agencies that focus solely on one market.”

A stable market

In regards to the housing market, we discussed how the market is doing currently and how Marcela Properties faired under the conditions of the pandemic. Ruben Marcela, explained that “the housing market is doing well currently, we did have a decrease in sales last year due to the pandemic, however, the high-end market did not suffer and was actually the most stable market during the pandemic and it has continued to prosper, which is why we have gone premium.”

“There has been a huge increase in the growth of the high-end market, specifically in the Lagos area and our focus is on this type of product. The company’s decision came from looking at where the increase of sales came from and to give the luxury segment more attention.” Marcela Premium takes great pride in their service and they are a real estate agency that is dedicated to providing clients with a service they can count on, whether you would like to buy or sell an exclusive property, they are here to make the process easier.

High-end properties

The Golden Triangle in the Algarve is well known for its premium properties and undoubtedly it still growing when it comes to the high-end housing market. However, Ruben Marcela, explained that “there is a changing perception of the Algarve in regards to high-end properties and that Lagos is going premium. Palmares Golf and Living has really elevated the segment a lot in Lagos and has really exposed that the authentic town of Lagos has a lot to offer clients with Porto Mós to Meia Praia, while Luz is also becoming more popular.”

Ruben Marcela, believes that “things have changed in Lagos and that Lagos now has a lot more to offer, having premium properties is one thing, but a house is not enough to attract clients to Lagos, what is really important to our clients is the infrastructure. I have seen the great improvements made to Lagos as a whole in the last year as there was a big investment done to attract people here.” Additionally, “the restaurants, the school options, supermarkets, beautiful beaches and golf courses are what really draw clients here. It has really taken off in the last five years and we are excited to share that with prospective buyers.”

“We are investing a lot also in positioning ourselves in high-end property portals, so we have made a completely new website and also a new selection of property portals covering the International market. We have some different ways of working internally and we do not want to have a lot of enquires, what is really important to us is having a more intimate relationship with our client. We really want to know what our clients like and what would be their preference and give them tailored quality service.”

In terms of the way Marcela Premium works, they want to be able to give clients a better understanding of the area and to accompany the client, even at the very early stages and give them all the information they need. Following that they will go through all the properties available in the area and “we can even do some research for the prospective buyer and if the client specifically knows where he or she would like to be, we have contacts whereby we will see if they are interested in selling to us.

“Finally, it is interesting to know that if an owner comes to me to sell their home, I will make a marketing strategy with them and one of our strategies is to also list their property through Marcela Properties in order to maximise the exposure of the property”, the added bonus is that owners only need to deal with one person, giving prospective sellers peace of mind and ensuring optimum results.

For further information, please visit www.marcelapremium.com

Author

Following undertaking her university degree in English with American Literature in the UK, Cristina da Costa Brookes moved back to Portugal to pursue a career in Journalism, where she has worked at The Portugal News for 3 years. Cristina’s passion lies with Arts & Culture as well as sharing all important community-related news.

Cristina da Costa Brookes