Billionaires have been trading multimillion-dollar real estate with tremendous zeal in recent years, slapping down record sums for trophy homes while quietly floating other properties in their portfolios through brokers in unofficial, off-market offerings. While the downturn paused activity in the super luxury end of the market, high net-worth buyers started fresh buying sprees in late 2010, trolling for high-end trophy property ‘bargains’ selling at markedly lower prices than their housing bubble heights or parking investment cash in prized pied-a-terres tucked inside the world’s most exclusive buildings. In fact, billionaire buying activity in the super luxury end of the world’s most expensive housing markets has been, according to a recent report from Savills, “so intense over the last seven years that it has led to a doubling of property values in this [super luxury housing] sector.”

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