Hong Kong soared higher than London as the world’s top luxury real estate market in 2016, as the city-state saw continued demand from wealthy Chinese buyers despite hefty stamp duties, reported Mansion Global citing a report from Christie’s International Real Estate.
London dropped to second place for the first time in four years, with New York clinching the third spot, while Los Angeles and Singapore settled in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
In 2016, Hong Kong had four residential sales above $100 million and claimed the majority of 1,500 residences publicly available for sale at $20 million and above, setting an record of
Peaks in markets like Hong Kong have been set against “more turbulent waters witnessed in deep markets like the U.K., which has had to deal with an election, new taxes from a Conservative government, Brexit, and yet another election,” Dan Conn, CEO of Christie’s property division, said in a statement.
While top-tier real estate is thriving, sales of modestly priced luxury properties are starting to slow. Sales of homes costing at least $1 million grew 1 percent worldwide last year, down from 8 percent growth in 2015 and a 16 percent increase in 2014, according to the report. The average time it took to sell a luxury property rose about 13 percent to 220 days as supply outweighed demand in some markets.
Source: Property Report, Bloomberg, Mansion Global