What Luxury Real Estate Really Means in Fort Wayne
Market Update · From Moving Fort Wayne
What Luxury Real Estate Really Means in Fort Wayne
When people hear the word luxury, Brad Noll says, they often picture country clubs, designer bags, and reality shows about multimillion dollar listings. There is entertainment value in those, but they do not describe the real market in Fort Wayne. On this episode of Moving Fort Wayne, Brad sits down with Kelly Werth to bring some real insight to luxury real estate.
Kelly is in her ninth year of residential real estate and has guided luxury buyers throughout that time, with lake properties becoming a sweet spot in recent years. Together they define luxury, describe who the buyers are at each price level, share how sellers can win, and close with an announcement: the launch of Noll Reserve, a new luxury brand from Noll Team Real Estate.
How Is Luxury Defined in Fort Wayne?
Brad explains that luxury is often defined as the top 10 percent of home sales in a market. In Fort Wayne, that threshold sits at about $500,000. In Hamilton County near Indianapolis, it is closer to $900,000. He compares it to a golf handicap: the numbers differ from market to market, but the method lets you compare them fairly. At the time of recording, he says luxury inventory was up about 20 percent while sales in that space were still up 3 percent year to date, a sign of real demand.
What buyers want varies by place. In large markets like Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago, where luxury can start in the millions, buyers focus on exactly where they live and the status of the building. In Fort Wayne, Kelly says, luxury buyers care about school districts, square footage, lot size, privacy, and access to golf courses, lakes, and walking trails. They are often busy executives and medical professionals who want a turnkey home with the finishes, upgrades, and technology already in place.
Brad is clear that understanding a price range is not about treating people differently. He compares it to car dealerships on the same block, where some brands offer Saturday service and others hand you a loaner car. It is about meeting and then exceeding expectations. Kelly adds that anticipating needs and being proactive matters at every price, and especially in luxury.
“One of the great pieces of advice I learned many years ago is don't wait until you're ready to sell to update and do the updates in your home.”
Kelly Werth
Five Price Segments, From Starter to Ultra Luxury
To understand the market more precisely, the team breaks Fort Wayne into five segments based on an average home price of about $292,000 to $295,000 at the time of recording:
- Starter homes, below the average: often up to about 2,000 square feet with three or four bedrooms and two baths. Brad calls this one of his favorite ranges because it is where wealth building starts.
- Average homes, from about $292,000: often 2,500 square feet or more above ground, basements, four or more bedrooms, three car garages, and larger lots.
- High-end homes, about two times the average, from roughly $584,000: often over 3,000 square feet above grade, sometimes five bedrooms, with quartz or granite throughout.
- Luxury homes, about three times the average, from roughly $875,000 to $1.5 million: high-end finishes, wood details, and space for entertaining, home offices, and home gyms.
- Ultra luxury, about ten times the average, near $2.9 to $3 million: unique homes built for a purpose, often for business owners after an exit or established physicians.
Kelly reminds buyers who want something brand new that older neighborhoods can offer larger lots, mature trees, and privacy, often with homes that have been beautifully updated. Brad adds a reminder about price per square foot: "You don't buy a car by the pound." In higher price ranges, amenities and finishes matter more than size alone.
In the luxury range, Brad says buyers are often emerging executives and physicians who host dinner parties, clients, and out of town guests. Kelly notes that many want two home offices, ideally on different floors so neither has to hear the other's conference calls.
Luxury Clients Already Have a Team
Brad points out that most clients at this level are leaders who make decisions all day and already work with accountants, attorneys, and financial advisors. The Realtor becomes part of that financial decision-making team. Kelly recently closed a sale where she coordinated with a client's financial planner and several other advisors. Since much of a client's wealth may be in their home, she says it is important for the team to be the real estate experts in that circle.
Brad also shares advice he received early in his career from a financial advisor: his number one asset was his income. Whether someone is buying a starter home or a luxury home, the framework is similar and depends heavily on debt-to-income ratio. For anyone dreaming of a luxury home someday, he encourages growing that income through promotions, training, or a business on the side.
How Luxury Sellers Win
When sellers ask about timing, Kelly starts with their personal goals. Fort Wayne is busy 12 months a year now, but inventory, competition, interest rates, and affordability all shape the buyer pool. Brad notes that days on market rise with price. He says the average Allen County home sells in about 32 days, while a friend's report from Indianapolis showed homes between $5 and $10 million averaging 120 to 150 days. That is why the team leads with a pricing strategy, then builds the marketing strategy.
The biggest mistake Kelly sees is overpricing due to emotional attachment. Sellers love their choices and assume expensive selections from years ago should bring a higher price. Today's buyers want current technology, from smart lighting and security cameras to sound systems. Brad sums it up: "Fundamentals don't change, but the strategies and the tactics do." Price, condition, and location matter whether a home is $100,000 or far more. Skipping staging is another mistake, since about 90 percent of buyers start online, and Noll Team Interiors helps homes win the photo game.
What Is Noll Reserve?
Noll Reserve is the team's new luxury brand, built to come alongside Noll Team agents so they can understand these price ranges more deeply and serve clients even better. Kelly says it comes down to anticipating needs and offering concierge service. She shares the story of a buyer relocating from the West Coast whose husband chose the home while she joined showings by FaceTime. When the family arrived on Fourth of July weekend, Kelly met them at the airport.
She had already set up school meetings, arranged lawn care for the four acre property, found a vet and groomer for the family dog, made a map of nearby essentials, brought sparklers for the kids, and left a gift card for dinner that first night. "There's going to be things they're not even thinking about," Kelly says. Brad adds that the team also offers community tours for employers recruiting talent to Fort Wayne. Luxury, he says, is about lifestyle, legacy, and being intentional.
▶ Listen to the full episode
Noll Reserve: Elevating the Luxury Real Estate Experience, on Moving Fort Wayne.
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