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The SpaceX IPO is expected to mint thousands of new millionaires and multiple new billionaires. While current and former employees won't be able to sell their shares right away, some are already planning how to spend their windfall.
That newfound wealth could have a ripple effect across the luxury property markets near SpaceX's office hubs and boost spending on watches, private jet charters and other status symbols, experts told CNBC.
Real estate agent Gerard Bisignano said he has recently received inquiries from several longtime SpaceX employees looking for homes in the South Bay area of California. They range in age from their mid-30s to early 40s, he said.
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"They seem to be in a state of disbelief themselves that they're suddenly going to be able to, in some examples, buy a home for their parents. They're going to have all this discretionary income that they can really do what they want," said Bisignano, a partner at Vista Sotheby's.
SpaceX's California office is a short drive away from the wealthy coastal communities of Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Palos Verdes Estates. Bisignano said he expects many SpaceX employees to snap up high-end homes in the area. He noted there was a similar buying spree in the neighborhoods around the Facebook headquarters after that company's initial public offering in 2012, with home values there jumping 21%.
Bisignano said he also anticipates an influx in interest for second homes in other scenic California locales like Mammoth Lakes, Palm Springs and Tahoe.
Texas real estate agent Gary Dolch said he's seeing similar interest from SpaceX employees in the greater Austin area, with SpaceX's Bastrop campus located roughly 30 miles from downtown Austin. Some plan to buy soon after taking a margin loan, while others are waiting for the IPO lockup period to end, he said.
Prospective homebuyers' tastes run the gamut from luxury condos on Lake Austin or Lake Travis to 1,000-acre ranches farther from the city, Dolch said. He added that he's optimistic that the IPO will boost the luxury market in Austin, which has softened over past three to four years.
"It feels like we're on the verge of the next wave in Austin's expansion fueled by this tech run," he said.