Various global lists in recent years have ranked Dubai among the costliest, most popular and fastest developing cities in the world. But a new analysis of residential and office space rents ranks the emirate seventh most expensive city to live and work worldwide.
The new Savills World Cities Live-Work Index, released Monday, reveals that Hong Kong remains the most expensive city for companies to locate employees. The study looked at the latest rent prices for both residential and working space for a single employee per year in some of the biggest cities in the world. With an average annual cost of living and working per employee worth of $123,000, Hong Kong tops the list and is significantly ahead of London and New York, which come at second and third places respectively. The Index also shows that the average global cost of renting residential and office space in a world city has increased 21 percent since 2009, the year when most city rental markets bottomed out. The two new entrants in the list this year are Dubai and Rio de Janeiro, with Dubai reporting an impressive growth over a short period of time.
According to the report, total live-work costs remained broadly stable over the past year, with Dubai being a notable exception. The rent prices in the emirate rose by the incredible 41 percent in comparison with the rates measured in the previous year, the largest rate of annual growth all over the Index. However, the city sees a “generous” working space allocation per worker, which is a result from the past lower rents versus bigger supply. The emergence of the new world city real estate markets, Dubai and Rio de Janeiro, reflects recent economic growth and improved reputation, as well. While Rio earned its place in the ranking due to upcoming Olympic Games, Dubai showed a confident growth, becoming a hot business and investment hub of the Middle East.
The report reveals that the current live-work cost in Dubai averages $72,000 per employee a year.
World’s Most Expensive Cities to Live and Work
1. Hong Kong, $123,000
2. London, $115,000
3. New York, $112,000
4. Paris, $107,000
5. Singapore, $76,000
6. Tokyo, $74,000
7. Dubai, $72,000
8. Moscow, $70,000
9. Sydney, $60,000
10. Shanghai, $44,000
11. Rio de Janeiro, $30,000
12. Mumbai, $28,000
