European cities, such as Madrid, Berlin, Paris and Dublin, saw a marked increase in luxury residential prices in the second quarter, while the pace of growth in China’s first tier cities slowed, according to a Knight Frank report published Wednesday.
The Knight Frank Prime Global Cities Index, which tracks luxury residential markets—defined as the top 5% the housing market in each city—across 41 cities worldwide, rose 4.4% year-over-year by the end of June.
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Guangzhou still leads the rankings with an annual 35.6% increase in luxury prices in the second quarter, but the momentum of growth slowed down. In the first quarter of this year, luxury residential prices in the city, located in proximity to Hong Kong and known for its manufacturing industries, grew 36.2%.
On a quarterly basis, the city’s prime price index increased 6.2% in the second quarter, compared to a 12.1% increase in the first quarter.
Notes: ¹ Based on top-tier of mainstream market in metro area ² Based on all contracts above Yen100m 3 Provisional
In fact, "all three Chinese cities tracked by our index recorded a decline in annual growth compared with the rate seen last quarter," said Kate Everett-Allen at Knight Frank’s International Residential Research.
On the other hand, major European cities have shown signs of resurgence in luxury residential prices. Fears surrounding the upcoming Brexit have, in part, led to a recognition of Europe’s comparatively affordable luxury markets, according to the Knight Frank report.
Other findings include:
28 of the 41 cities recorded flat or rising luxury prices over the 12-month period Toronto ranked No. 2 with a 20.7% annual price increase Beijing saw the largest drop in price growth. Luxury price grew 15% in the second quarter, compared to 22.9% in the first quarter Prime London prices declined 6.3% year-over-year, but that was the slowest quarterly drop since early 2016 San Francisco had the highest price growth among the four U.S. cities the Index tracks, rising 3.8% year-over-year in the second quarter. The other three U.S. cities include Los Angeles (3.7%), Miami (2.1%) and New York (1.5%)