SA joins Alpha Cities Index for world’s elite luxury housing markets

Cape Town and Johannesburg have been included in the first-ever Alpha Cities Index, which ranks the most desirable global cities for ultra-wealthy individuals looking to purchase luxury real estate.

The Global Property Handbook, which reviews the global luxury real estate market, explores the buying habits of the world’s wealthiest Individuals. For the first time, the latest edition of the handbook includes the Alpha Cities Index of the 50 most desirable prime global city for the super-wealthy (individuals with net worth of $30m (R406m) or more).

“The ideal city for an ultra-high net worth individual must satisfy a range of practical, emotional and financial considerations…”

The ideal city for an ultra-high net worth individual must satisfy a range of practical, emotional and financial considerations – including cultural experience, ease of doing business, connectivity and green credentials.

While prime global cities like London continue to dominate the rankings, a number of emerging market cities – including South Africa’s major metros – are beginning to challenge the more established centres of wealth.

According to the index, Cape Town is ranked in 37^th place – placing it one notch below Dubai but on a par with Oslo, Basel and Moscow.

Johannesburg (at 46^th) places the city on a par with Shenzhen, China and Rio de Janeiro and just below cities like Sao Paulo, Dublin, Mumbai and Kuwait City.

The inclusion of Cape Town and Johannesburg in the Alpha Cities Index reveals just how far South Africa has come in terms of attracting – and retaining – the global super-rich.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and the dampening effect of a rise in stamp duty, London’s residential property market still holds the greatest appeal for the world’s super-rich – beating off competition from New York, Tokyo and Sydney.

Manchester is the second choice for the ultra-wealthy seeking British property – ranking joint 26^th with Copenhagen.

The US is overwhelmingly the most popular country represented in the index, with American cities accounting for nearly half of the top 25 rankings. New York ranked second, behind London, followed by Chicago and San Francisco in joint sixth.

While cities in emerging markets generally feature lower down on the list, some are beginning to challenge the more established prime global cities. Mexico City, in 23^rdplace, is the top-ranked city from a developing country. Together with Shanghai, Mexico City now ranks higher than Zurich and Geneva. The latter also tied with Beijing which, despite being afflicted by severe smog and overcrowding, is awash with newly-minted billionaires.