How prime Dubai property prices compare globally

Hong Kong remains the most expensive prime residential city market in the world, with an average prime price of $4,251 per sq ft in 2018, according to latest data from Knight Frank’s Wealth Report Insight Series.

Across the ten cities surveyed, Dubai remains the most affordable market of those analysed with an average price of $625 per sq ft, just 15 per cent of the average price in Hong Kong.

It has nevertheless seen some of the highest price premiums. In 2014 at the peak of the market, one sale achieved $3,976 per sq ft, the fourth highest price achieved in any one location that year.

Taimur Khan, research manager at Knight Frank Middle East, said: “Dubai remains relatively affordable on a global basis. This relative affordability is not an indication of a lack of prime schemes. In fact, there are several schemes where the quality matches or in some cases, surpasses what is found in the aforementioned key global cities.

"Knight Frank has seen strong demand for properties in this segment of the market, with the benefit that in Dubai, buyers are able to acquire these prime projects at values that are relatively lower, compared to other key global cities, whilst still benefiting from Dubai’s business and lifestyle offer.”

Analysis over a five-year period shows that, despite average prices continuing to rise since 2014, the top price ever achieved in Hong Kong was back in 2016 when a home on The Peak sold for $28,154 per sq ft for a total of $38.3m. Since then, the top price for a home has dropped by 16 percent.

London and New York remain dominant ultra-prime markets taking second and third place in the Knight Frank rankings with average prime prices currently standing at $3,022 and $2,989 per sq ft respectively.

Singapore has seen its highest achieved price remain relatively stable year-on-year, while the average prime price appreciated by 17 per cent between 2014 and 2018.

Across the ten cities surveyed, the differential between the average and top price achieved is just under 200 per cent. Over the last five years, the gap has been the largest in Hong Kong, a difference of 624 per cent in 2016. However, uplifts of a similar magnitude were echoed in Dubai in 2014 and Miami in 2015.

The uplift is lowest in Paris and Singapore, with five-year averages of 30 per cent and 39 per cent respectively.

Knight Franks said this might reflect the fact that these cities sit in the middle of the price spectrum while the most dramatic uplifts are typically seen at the far ends – in those cities with the lowest or highest prices.