Written by by Staff Writer at CNN
Soaring property prices and lack of employment opportunities have pushed Mexico City into the ranks of the world’s most expensive cities, according to the latest Luxury Global Cities Index.
At $2,641 per square meter, Mexico City now ranks above Jakarta, Singapore and Osaka, Japan, with New York and Zurich ranked in second and third place respectively.
The index measures cities’ residential and commercial real estate, hotel rooms, luxury cars, consumption of electronic goods and dining and recreational services.
“The main factors are demand, supply and the management of these things in a particular city,” John McAdam, chairman of global property search website Global Blue, which helps manage the index, said in a statement.
Mexico City comes in 4th place in the ranking of the most expensive cities in the world, up from the 6th spot it held last year. Last year, it lost its ranking as the most expensive Latin American city due to property prices soaring.
Omni, a brand of the hotel chain, opened the largest luxury hotel in Mexico City in 2018 at $25 million. Credit: Sid Nadjey/Pool via Bloomberg
“Of course the country’s tax laws are a big factor, and the lack of employment is the next factor.”
“These three factors are being discussed in different sectors of the population and are having an impact on the inflation level of certain groups of people and the total country’s ability to generate income which could translate into high costs for things like car ownership, electronics, goods and services that people purchase,” said McAdam.