Singapore is ranked ninth globally in attracting major property investments, joining Hong Kong and Sydney as the only names from Asia-Pacific to be placed in the top ten of a list dominated by US cities. The rest of the top ten cities include North American cities including New York, which was top on the list, as well as Los Angeles, Washington DC and Chicago.
The results are taken from a global wealth report that looked at data on Singapore property investments worth US$10 million and above by private individuals or family offices across commercial and residential markets. Rankings took into account both the volume of investments as well as the number of different nationalities who have made investments.
The same report also tracked the movement in luxury prices across the world’s top residential markets. The value of the 100 luxury residential market increased by 1.3%, lower than the 2.1% in 2017. Manila recorded the largest increase at 11.1% while Singapore’s prices went up by more than 9% and marks the highest point of its current market cycle.
Apart from investments, the report also ranked cities in other categories, such as wealth and lifestyle, in addition to an overall ranking aimed at singling out “global powerhouses”.
London came out tops in the overall ranking, with New York, Hong Kong and Singapore coming in second, third and fourth respectively.
Five Asian cities were placed in the top ten cities in the wealth category, which looks at the current population of high net worth individuals, or those with net assets of over US$1 million, and ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWI) or those with net assets surpassing US$30 million. The five cities are Hong Kong, Beijing, Seoul, Shanghai and Singapore.
Asia is expected to witness the fastest growth in UHNWIs between 2018 and 2023, with an expected increase of more than 20% from the 48,245 individuals reported in 2018. Returns from traditional and alternative investments, real estate as well as the health of major economies are factors which underpin the growth.
In the lifestyle category, Singapore was ranked number one, in a tie with London.