Gulf millionaires more likely to invest in Dubai property market over London in 2017

Dubai’s property market is set to overtake the international destinations of London, New York and Singapore as the top choice for GCC wealthiest investors next year, a report has found.

The region’s high net worth individuals ($1m-plus) ranked London in second place alongside Paris and Doha in Cluttons’ third Middle East Private Capital survey, while Toronto made a surprise entry at number three.

For this year, London remains the top destination outside the Middle East for Gulf investors, cited as a top three market by 17 per cent of the 127 millionaires interviewed by Cluttons, ahead of New York (16 per cent) and Singapore (13 per cent).

This is despite London property values reaching as much $4000 per square feet, roughly three times the price of high-end apartments in Manhattan and Singapore’s Marina Bay.

Price softening within the Dubai property market was cited as the top reason for this increase in attractiveness, alongside the upcoming Expo 2020.

Murray Strang, head of Cluttons’ Dubai base, said that the Expo’s potential for capital growth and higher yields in the market means that “people now see really good value for money in Dubai”.

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