LOS ANGELES—This pause in the market is the perfect time to start a new venture. At least, that is what brokers Horacio LeDon and Mark Rutstein are saying. The duo has formed Iconic Group at Partners Trust, a luxury residential group that will focus on bespoke luxury homes as well as condo development projects. The demand for bespoke and luxury real estate is rising, and the duo sees this as a long-term trend.

“We have seen a little bit of a pause in the market, probably because prices have risen steadily and need a break,” LeDon, who heads the development group at Partners Trust, tells GlobeSt.com. “So, we weren't in the thick of a lot of deals being done, and that gave us the opportunity to do it with care and patience.”

While this was a good time in the market, the market conditions were not the impetus for LeDon and Rutstein to form Iconic Group. “For us, this was opportunistic more than anything else,” says LeDon. “Mark Rutstein was in a longstanding partnership that ended up unwinding and it presented an opportunity to work together. For me, this was a tremendous opportunity to partner with someone who is well accomplished and an amazing person. It wasn't necessarily market conditions but it was good timing none the less.”

Iconic Group will focus on luxury real estate, both existing projects and development projects, under $75 million. In this market, LeDon says there is growing demand because of the focus on multifamily for the last few years. “So much development went into the multifamily space, and that left a lot of voids in the market,” he says. “The condo space has kind of skewed upwards into the luxury arena because it is generally discretionary buying. Because so much has focused on the multifamily space, condo development has really lagged. On the housing side, you have a real trend to develop single-family homes to the spec that these buyers respond to, and as a result, you can charge a premium for that. It has really raised the bar for the single-family home market.”

The group will focus on luxury and luxury-adjacent markets throughout the L.A. market, even some markets that are not considered luxury, like Encino. “All submarkets are getting a pretty good bump from the main luxury submarkets, like Beverly Hills, Palisades, West Hollywood,” adds LeDon. “We are trying to be very active in Encino, for example, because we think it is a market where the price point is very compelling because of Studio City. We like submarkets that trade at a discount, and we are pretty bullish on those area. Then there are areas like Mar Vista and Playa Vista markets that are exploding because of the Google Campus, but those markets are still below what our ideal markets are for yield on efforts.”

LOS ANGELES—This pause in the market is the perfect time to start a new venture. At least, that is what brokers Horacio LeDon and Mark Rutstein are saying. The duo has formed Iconic Group at Partners Trust, a luxury residential group that will focus on bespoke luxury homes as well as condo development projects. The demand for bespoke and luxury real estate is rising, and the duo sees this as a long-term trend.

“We have seen a little bit of a pause in the market, probably because prices have risen steadily and need a break,” LeDon, who heads the development group at Partners Trust, tells GlobeSt.com. “So, we weren't in the thick of a lot of deals being done, and that gave us the opportunity to do it with care and patience.”

While this was a good time in the market, the market conditions were not the impetus for LeDon and Rutstein to form Iconic Group. “For us, this was opportunistic more than anything else,” says LeDon. “Mark Rutstein was in a longstanding partnership that ended up unwinding and it presented an opportunity to work together. For me, this was a tremendous opportunity to partner with someone who is well accomplished and an amazing person. It wasn't necessarily market conditions but it was good timing none the less.”

Iconic Group will focus on luxury real estate, both existing projects and development projects, under $75 million. In this market, LeDon says there is growing demand because of the focus on multifamily for the last few years. “So much development went into the multifamily space, and that left a lot of voids in the market,” he says. “The condo space has kind of skewed upwards into the luxury arena because it is generally discretionary buying. Because so much has focused on the multifamily space, condo development has really lagged. On the housing side, you have a real trend to develop single-family homes to the spec that these buyers respond to, and as a result, you can charge a premium for that. It has really raised the bar for the single-family home market.”

The group will focus on luxury and luxury-adjacent markets throughout the L.A. market, even some markets that are not considered luxury, like Encino. “All submarkets are getting a pretty good bump from the main luxury submarkets, like Beverly Hills, Palisades, West Hollywood,” adds LeDon. “We are trying to be very active in Encino, for example, because we think it is a market where the price point is very compelling because of Studio City. We like submarkets that trade at a discount, and we are pretty bullish on those area. Then there are areas like Mar Vista and Playa Vista markets that are exploding because of the Google Campus, but those markets are still below what our ideal markets are for yield on efforts.”