ARNOLD INVESTMENTS: Talk less, get more

The demand for direct property investments has recently reached an all-time high. No wonder, as in times of financial insecurity, high-quality properties combine attractive potential returns and maximum security. It pays off extra if you have a reliable business partner at your side who lives and works by the motto “less talking, more doing”.

Vienna-based Arnold Investments is such a partner. Following the company’s credo “less talking, more doing” at all times, the team of internationally renowned property sales experts focuses on providing high-quality property sales support without making too much of a fuss. Managing director Markus Arnold founded the estate agency and specialised in professional property investments back in 2009. However, even before this point, the name Arnold was well-known among professional property investors.

“During my years as an employed estate agent, I have gone through all stages of property selling and was involved in many exciting deals,” remembers Arnold. But although these were tremendous experiences, there was a point at which the Austrian property expert just wanted to do “his own thing”. “I realised the potential of the niche market investment property when I was the manager of the investment department at a large, listed real estate group. It was also clear to me that the investment clients we serve today required a special kind of service. This was something I was very curious about and wanted to specialise in. So I just jumped in at the deep end and founded my own business.” The jump turned out to be a very successful one. So far, Arnold has handled over 300 investment deals with a sales volume of more than 1.3 billion euros.

Vienna office.

Grand outlooks from Vienna and beyond

It was not long until Arnold Investments expanded to include cities in neighbouring countries that are just as impressive as Vienna when it comes to grand, historical buildings from the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. Today, Arnold Investments has offices in Vienna, Prague, Bratislava and Budapest. These historic cities offer plenty of beautiful, prestigious buildings and are thus perfectly suited for Arnold’s comprehensive portfolio of imposing investment properties.

“Nowadays every kind of property investment is interesting,” he explains. “This is because there is a constant threat about the devaluation of currency. Grand and impressive properties from the turn of the 19th century are a very special kind of asset though. Investing in these is a lot of fun – not only today, but for generations to come.” Arnold continues that the most secure location of making a property investment is Vienna, while Budapest provides the greatest upside. “So it’s just a question of which city you prefer. In my opinion, you will benefit from investing in any of these locations – given that you go through a well-informed, professional consultation process beforehand.”

Core advantage: specialisation

A well-informed, professional consultation? That is certainly something you can expect to receive at Arnold Investments. The company believes that there can be no expertise without focus. After all, a famous saying tells us that a so-called “Jack of all trades”, one who tries to do everything, never succeeds at doing anything right. Thus, specialisation is key. “That is why we wholeheartedly concentrate on our core competence: property investments,” says Arnold and adds that only highly specialised and committed experts with an excellent market knowledge work at Arnold Investments.

40 experts in four countries take care of every need

“Our services are very comprehensive, both when it comes to the time we invest as well as our employee’s capabilities,” explains the agency’s director. “We have 40 experts in four countries, who concentrate a 100 per cent on the task of selling an investment property. They carry out the preliminary legal examination of the property, draft a rough estimate of the technical due diligence, process the offers, research market data and supply all service providers needed to ensure a smooth management process for the property.” Professional judgement, a personal service and discretion when handling deals are all self-evident to Arnold’s team. This means that the company’s clients, which include wealthy private individuals as well as foundations and institutional investors from all around the world, can completely rely on the team when they are looking for the perfect property to invest in.

Markus Arnold.

Trust is everything

However well organised the property sales processes are, the real estate experts at Arnold Investments emphasise that property is not their most valuable asset. Instead, it is the trust of their clients. As trust is closely connected to personality, any enquiries coming in are handled personally by the company’s in-house investment specialists. The rule here is less is more. There should be less hierarchy and more personality.

“We never push or urge our clients,” explains Arnold further. “This is not what we have to do in order to make a good deal. Sometimes we even reject special kinds of requests from the vendor if they are just too ridiculous.” Instead, Arnold and his team strategically plan and think through all selling and marketing activities. The aim of Arnold Investments is to build long-lasting personal relationships with the clients instead of getting through a quick sale. Since many of the agency’s clients are “repeat offenders” this approach seems to be working really well, continues the director.

New buyers from overseas

“Wealthy, private clients have become more courageous,” replies Arnold when asked about the current trends in his industry. “An increasing number of them is prepared to not only invest in a secure residential property, but also in commercial real estate. Furthermore, the market becomes more international and the money comes from far away.” The local market operators still prevail of course, but in recent years Arnold Investments has also seen an increasing number of Asian, Arabian and American investors. “Given the current financial uncertainty, properties are still seen as the most secure investment everywhere in the world,” concludes Arnold.

Investing in the future

So what kind of investments are the investment specialists planning to set up themselves? “Next year, we will open a new office branch in Berlin,” reveals Arnold. On 1 November, the office in Vienna will also receive a commercial department, which exclusively handles the organisation of institutional investors and their financial assets. “Generally speaking, our main target is to remain a prime European estate agent regarding property investments for family offices and foundations. The most important aspect is, however, to increase the volume of our transactions and at the same time deliver a constantly high service to our clients.”

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TEXT: SONJA IRANI | PHOTOS: ARNOLD INVESTMENTS