For the ultrawealthy, it used to largely be the case that they wanted their flashy home purchases and sales to be made very public: Think drone shots, a glossy listing, and a splashy press release naming the owner and buyer.
A growing class of ultrawealthy buyers, particularly tech and AI executives who have moved to Silicon Valley, are deliberately routing their home purchases through limited liability companies, privacy trusts, and so-called “whisper” listings that never touch the multiple listing service.
“Increased wealth brought about greater security concerns and a stronger desire for privacy,” he said. “Over the last year, AI has driven some of the greatest wealth creation Silicon Valley has seen in 25 years, while also becoming an increasingly controversial topic. As a result, the desire for privacy has grown even stronger.”
That detail is key: For the buyers behind these transactions, exposure about their home transactions is more of a liability than a flex.
“Events like this have made people want to distance themselves further from public attention and increased their desire to remain anonymous,” DeLeon said.
“Some sellers prioritize privacy over price and are willing to sell off market to avoid exposure,” he added.
Anonymity extends beyond just the listing. For higher-end clients, DeLeon said, he routinely recommends taking title through an LLC or a privacy trust—but with one key detail.
“Sophisticated clients want to structure things carefully, making sure the manager of the LLC is not someone directly associated with them, such as their personal attorney,” he said. “The goal is to ensure that, even if someone digs into ownership records, they still cannot easily connect the property back to the principal owner.”
And the effort toward maintaining privacy doesn’t stop at closing.
“Utilities, deliveries, and even small packages, such as toys ordered for their children, are often placed under the LLC or trust name rather than their personal name,” DeLeon said, in order for owners to maintain a low profile.
It’s not just the buyers’ or sellers’ effort to keep a low profile. The job of luxury agents has shifted, too. DeLeon said he’s routinely asked to act as a buffer by meeting vendors, signing for inspections, and fielding questions and details that an owner would normally handle.
Sometimes clients won’t even want agents or sellers to know who they are, he added.
“In some cases, both sides of the transaction conceal their identities,” he said. “I try to serve as a buffer for my clients throughout the entire process, ensuring that vendors and other involved parties do not know the identity of the principal.”
While stealth-wealth buyers win privacy, they pay for it—literally. That’s because off-market sales tend to reach a smaller pool of buyers, which means less competition and often lower offers.
“Most sellers understand that when they sell off the market, they are usually accepting a lower sales price,” DeLeon said. “In general, studies have shown that off-market listings across nearly all price points tend to sell for less than they would if they were fully exposed to the open market.”
DeLeon said brokerages still push off-market sales for the wrong reasons.
“Unfortunately, many brokerages encourage off-market sales not to protect sellers’ privacy, but to minimize marketing costs and increase the likelihood of double-ending their commission,” he said.
Whether stealth wealth practices will become even more prevalent is still in question.
“If sellers are told the true cost of selling off-market—that protecting privacy will likely lower their sales price—then I think the pendulum may swing back where sellers prefer to get full exposure for their home and thereby maximize their sales price,” DeLeon said, “even if it means some loss of privacy.”
