Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa September 2014 | Page 55

REI OFFSHORE
REI OFFSHORE

PRIME RESIDENTIAL PRICE GROWTH
POSITIVE IN 27 GLOBAL CITIES

EXPERT Q&A

Safe
international
property
transactions

James Bowling
CEO
Monarch&Co
How can investors ensure they are
dealing with a reputable international
investment company?

K

night Frank’s Prime Global Cities Index shows luxury residential prices
across the index’s 32 cities rose by 6.2% on average in the year to
June 2014. Of the 32 prime residential markets tracked by the index,
27 recorded positive annual price growth in the year to June 2014, up from
21 a year earlier.
With the gradual withdrawal of stimulus measures in the US and the UK,
the prospect of rising interest rates and the continual enforcement of cooling
measures across much of Asia, it would be logical to assume the index’s
performance would be weakening. However, the index’s annual increase of
6.2% in the year to June is above the long-run average of 4.6% recorded
since Lehman’s collapse in the third quarter of 2008, underlining the extent
to which prime property has become a favoured asset class globally. Jakarta
and Dublin stand out due to their stellar performances, while luxury homes
in key US cities are now increasing in value at a faster rate than those in
several European and Asian cities.

Hilary Dingwall-Fordyce )