Revealed: 11 most expensive cities for luxury homes in Asia
Revealed: 11 most expensive cities for luxury homes in Asia
Also, find out the priciest places for pianos, bottles of wine, and skincare cream
Shanghai is the priciest city in Asia for living out the luxury life, according to an index released with Swiss private bank Julius Baer’s annual Wealth Report: Asia on Tuesday.
This year’s Lifestyle Index saw China’s largest city topping 10 other Asian destinations in terms of living costs for upmarket consumers June 2015 and June 2016.
The index tracks movements of prices of 21 luxury goods and services, including jewellery, watches, cars, university education, cigars, business class flights, handbags, and shoes. Julius Baer added skincare cream as a category this year in recognition of the beauty and personal care industry’s remarkable growth.
The residential property category tells a different story though. The sub-index, which tracks the average price of prime homes with an area of 4,000 square feet, saw a price decline of 8.4 percent (in US dollar terms) year-on-year.
Here are the 11 most expensive places in Asia to buy residential property (and everything else in between), according to Julius Baer:
1. Hong Kong
Hong Kong is still the most expensive city for residential property in Asia, with prices hanging at USD41.2 million on average, five times as costly as the average for the region, Julius Baer’s report showed. “We expect the bellwether property sector to remain resilient,” they stated.
2. Shanghai
Although Shanghai was rated number one on the main Lifestyle Index, prices of luxury homes in the expansive Chinese city average USD16.6 million, a 5.5 percent plunge from the last report. It is the most expensive city for buying high-end skincare cream though, available at an average price of USD1,537.
3. Singapore
One of the hardest-hit cities in terms of residential property growth, Singapore saw values decline by a staggering 26.3 percent. The property market in the city-state has softened on the back of raised stamp duties and renewed credit tightening against non-residents and overseas speculators. The index noted that developers have discounted and incentivised their offerings in the first half of 2016, leading to an increase in sales volumes.
4. Taipei
To buy a luxury home in Taipei, you’ll need to shell out USD6 million on average. Although all cities on the residential property sub-index recorded decreases, the Taiwanese city made the shortest fall at 0.7 percent. The city is the costliest departure point in Asia for flights to London or New York, with an average business class ticket selling for USD7,782.
5. Tokyo
Tokyo was hit by a 4.4 percent decline in prime property values, which average USD5.7 million. An overnight stay at a centrally located five-star in the city will set you back by an average of USD923, the most expensive in Asia.
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6. Seoul
South Korea’s capital city plunged 7 percent on the residential property subindex, with luxury homes now priced on average at USD3.9 million. It is the most expensive city to acquire an Armani suit.
7. Mumbai
Another badly hit Asian city is Mumbai, where average prime prices dropped 25.9 percent to USD3.7 million in the period tracked by Julius Baer. The Indian megalopolis is the fourth most expensive place in Asia to buy a car; a BMW 7 Series sedan will cost you around USD229,874.
8. Kuala Lumpur
Luxury home prices in the Malaysian metropolis are down 5 percent, with properties fetching an average of USD2.1 million. The city ranked second-costliest in Asia for top-notch lawyer services, trailing Singapore.
9. Jakarta
Julius Baer noted that home prices in the Indonesian city have been moderating this year. Buying sentiment is “lukewarm,” with owner-occupiers and investors holding out on a purchase due to the slacking economy.
10. Bangkok
Thailand’s touristy capital saw an average decline of 3.4 percent in home prices. House hunters shift USD1.8 million on average for residential property in the city. Musical maestro’s, beware: the city is the most expensive destination for purchasing pianos.
11. Manila
In the Philippine capital, the cost of buying a prime home in the past year has dropped to USD1.8 million, a 4.5 decrease. Manila wine is the priciest in Asia, at an average tag of USD3,092.
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Source: Property Report