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Luxury Lens: What is the true value of luxury living?

The wealthy are increasingly seeking homes in multiple jurisdictions. Choosing the right location means understanding the cost of luxury living across leading global destinations.

Comparison chart showing vacation homes as a percentage of housing stock in 2025 and 2026 across global cities. Singapore ranks first in both years, while Zurich rises from fifth to second and Monaco rises from fourth to third. London falls from second to fifth, and Bangkok enters the ranking at tenth in 2026. Rankings are ordered from most expensive to least expensive.

Two new datasets can help with that. First up, the Julius Baer Lifestyle Index, featured in the Global Wealth and Lifestyle Report 2026 published by Julius Baer in July 2026, measures the cost of a luxury lifestyle across the world’s major cities by tracking the prices of a basket of luxury goods and services.

According to the index, Singapore remains the world’s most expensive city for luxury living in 2026, followed by Zurich (up from fifth place in 2025) and Monaco, which replaces Hong Kong as the third most expensive global city this year.

Sydney, Milan and Bangkok are good picks for lower-cost luxury living, according to the index.

Bar chart ranking luxury vacation home markets by the starting price per square foot for the top 10% most expensive homes priced above US$5 million. Monaco and Hong Kong have the highest prices at approximately US$6,600 and US$6,500 per square foot, followed by Zurich (US$4,300) and New York condominiums (US$3,800). Bangkok has the lowest price at approximately US$1,200 per square foot.

The second dataset is a September 2026 Sotheby’s International Realty® brand analysis of US$5M+ property prices in these prime locations. This reveals that Monaco, at US$6,581 per square foot, is the most expensive global city for luxury real estate, followed by Hong Kong (US$6,500 per square foot) and Zurich (US$4,330 per square foot).

Of course, absolute cost is just one element in determining luxury value.

“Increasingly, we see active adaptation: choosing where to live, where to spend, and even where to purchase luxury goods based on relative value across jurisdictions,” says Christian Gattiker, head of research, Julius Baer. “This mobility—both physical and financial—is becoming a defining feature of wealth in 2026.”

Cover Property: Sydney Sotheby’s International Realty

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