Luxury Rents Around the World Rose Faster Than Sales Prices 2023
2 min
Luxury residential rents remained strong globally in 2023, outperforming capital values in 28 of the 30 cities tracked in the Savills World Cities Index, according to a report from the British real estate company on Wednesday. On average, luxury rents increased by 5.1% last year, compared to the average home price growth of 2.2%. “In the face of economic uncertainty, the prime residential rental market proved resilient in 2023,” said Kelcie Sellers, associate at Savills World Research.
“Continuing a trend from the past year, prime rental value growth outpaced capital values, largely driven by a lack of stock in global prime markets and increased levels of demand from individuals and families who would look to purchase a property, but are holding off until the economic and interest rate situations stabilise.”
Lisbon was by far the leader in rental growth, with luxury rents increasing by an average of 39% over the year and by 22% in just the second half of 2023, according to the report.
“Lisbon has seen an influx of people moving to the city, attracted to its climate, the quality of life on offer and strong business environment. But some have been more reluctant to enter the purchase market in Lisbon due to rising house prices and increasing interest rates,” Sellers said. “While the supply of houses in the rental market has not kept pace with demand, leading to a rise in rental prices throughout Portugal, it remains comparatively priced compared to other rental markets in Europe and will likely continue to attract new renters and investors over the coming year.”
Singapore led the Asia-Pacific region, with its rental growth at 12.3%, though that was down from 32.3% in 2022. Hong Kong also saw luxury rents increase, jumping by 5.9%, as high deposit requirements, increased interest rates and an influx of buyers from Mainland China drove would-be buyers to the rental market, according to Savills.
As for the year ahead, a slight increase in luxury rents is expected across the 30 global cities, though the price growth may be less than usual.
“Looking at the year ahead, prime rental prices are forecast to record a slight increase for the 30 cities covered in the World Cities index, as would-be prime buyers continue to turn to rental markets, but this growth will likely remain below the historic average,” Sellers said. Savills predicts that Amsterdam will lead this year’s rental growth index, with a forecasted increase of 6% to 7.9%, as the city has seen a spike in demand in tandem with limited supply and increased regulations on the private rented sector.
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Australia’s housing affordability crisis is being fuelled by chronic undersupply, planning delays and rising development costs, as politicians continue to focus on the wrong solutions.
3 min
Australia’s housing crisis will not be solved by first-home buyer incentives or tax changes alone, with leading property figures warning governments must tackle supply constraints if affordability is to improve.
Speaking at the Kanebridge Quarterly Property Leadership Summit in Sydney last week, expert project marketing specialist Sam Elbanna, property investor and fund manager Paul Miron and property consultant Karla McNeice said that a lack of housing supply remained the central issue facing the market.
Elbanna, Director of CPM Realty with more than 30 years’ experience in project sales, argued that successive governments had focused too heavily on stimulating demand rather than addressing the barriers preventing new housing from being delivered.
“The misconception is that politicians think the way to solve the housing crisis is to drive demand,” he said.
“The reality is that’s not the way. This is a supply-side problem, and it needs to be solved on the supply side.”
Drawing on his experience in project sales, Elbanna said policies designed to help first-home buyers often had unintended consequences, pointing to previous grants that ultimately flowed through to higher property prices.
Instead, he said developers were facing increasing red tape, approval delays and rising costs, which were discouraging new housing supply.
“In the absence of stock, demand exceeds supply,” he said.
Miron, a Co-Founder and Fund Manager of Msquared Capital, said the housing debate had become overly focused on tax policy while overlooking broader structural issues.
He argued that affordability challenges stemmed from a combination of factors, including planning constraints, supply shortages, migration levels and interest rates.
“No-one can be 100 per cent certain on the real reason for property prices is going up,” he said.
“The reason why property prices are higher is a combination of interest rates, lack of supply, migration, vacancy rates and maybe taxes play a role.”
Miron was critical of recent federal housing policy changes, warning they could reduce the number of new homes being built and further constrain supply that was even highlighted in the budget.
He also highlighted the importance of the property sector to the broader economy, noting that residential real estate and related industries employed more than one million Australians.
McNeice, who advises developers on sales strategy and market intelligence, said understanding buyers had become increasingly important as affordability pressures intensified.
While affordability remained a major consideration, she said today’s buyers were focused on value rather than simply price.
“People are looking for value for money,” she said.
She said buyers were increasingly evaluating factors such as transport connections, walkability, nearby amenities and flexible living spaces that could accommodate changing family needs.
“What infrastructure is going on? Can I walk to the shops? Can I meet people at the local cafe?” she said.
The panel also discussed the mounting pressures facing developers, with Elbanna arguing that many projects become financially unviable from the moment a site is purchased.
“The viability of a development happens at the moment the site is bought,” he said.
He said rising construction costs, higher interest rates and overly optimistic feasibility assumptions had left some developers exposed as market conditions changed.
While acknowledging the growing number of smaller and first-time developers entering the market, Elbanna said property development required expertise across finance, construction, marketing and legal disciplines.
“It is actually a business that requires a level of expertise,” he said.
Looking ahead, the panel agreed opportunities remained in the market despite current challenges.
Miron said property should continue to be viewed as a long-term investment and cautioned against trying to time short-term market movements.
McNeice said success would increasingly depend on identifying projects that genuinely met changing buyer expectations.
Elbanna said affordable housing remained achievable, but developers needed to deliver more than just homes.
“We can provide affordable housing in this country,” he said.
“But we’ve got to wrap that affordable housing with the things that people want.”
As Australia’s housing affordability debate intensifies, the panellists agreed on one point: without a meaningful increase in housing supply, demand-side measures alone are unlikely to solve the nation’s property challenges.
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