Russian city passes London and New York in elite real estate

Sochi has become one of the three most expensive markets for top-end properties in the world, according to the NF Group consultancy

Russia’s largest resort city, Sochi, has been shortlisted among the world’s three cities with the most expensive luxury housing, leaving New York and London behind. That’s according to a report released on Friday by the consulting company NF Group, citing the Wealth Report 2023.

The study is annually conducted by consultancy Knight Frank, with NF Group having worked in Russia under the brand until 2022. Russian cities were not included in the rating this year, but NF Group has calculated which places in the index they would take.

According to its estimates of a “million-dollar index,” or how many square meters of prime property can be bought for $1 million, the Black Sea resort city of Sochi comes third after Monaco and Hong Kong. In the Russian city, $1 million buys 29 square meters (sq m) in the luxury segment, with the same budget equating to 33 sq m in New York and 34 sq m in London.

The average price of elite housing in Sochi was 2.4 million rubles ($31,000) per square meter last year, analysts say. The figure ranged from 1.4 million rubles ($18,000) to 4.2 million rubles ($54,000) per sq m. This year the city, which hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics, will continue to attract the most buyers of luxury housing in Russia, NF Group predicts.

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The study also showed that in St. Petersburg, $1 million could buy 116 sq m of prime real estate in 2022. Moscow, with its 46 sq m, is ranked 12th on the list – between Shanghai and Beijing.

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