Beirut is the 10th most expensive city

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Dubai has fallen from the ranks of the world’s most expensive places to live in a development that could harm the city’s economic recovery, a survey has revealed.

Dubai has been steadily falling in the ranks of the most expensive cities in the world but this year it dropped off the scale of the top 20, the report said.

It came in at 31st, compared with its position of 12th last year.

“Price decreases have been … spectacular in Dubai,” the report by the consultancy EuroCost International said.

Billy Rautenbach, the managing director of The Property Store, said renting a home could take up as much as 70 per cent of a resident’s salary in 2008, while it cost only 20 per cent now.

“Maybe your salary has been cut or your turnover has declined, but the cost of living in Dubai has gone down considerably more,” Ms Rautenbach said.

Rental and sales prices have dropped between 15 and 70 per cent since their peaks. Abu Dhabi moved down one slot to 12th, from its position of 11th most expensive city last year.

The capital has seen its rental rates decline across the board but they are still at a significant premium to Dubai’s vast residential supply.

Shanghai and Beijing also dropped off the top 20 rankings, due to the global housing recession and exchange rate fluctuations.

tourists sunbathe as others swim at the St. George Yacht club in Beirut, Lebanon. Lebanon expects nearly 2.2 million tourists in 2010
Tokyo, London, and Hong Kong were the three most expensive cities for rents, according to the survey. Meanwhile, Beirut surged to the 10th most expensive city from a previous ranking of 28. “Beirut is now the most expensive city in the Middle East, just before Abu Dhabi,” the report said.

Ms Rautenbach said Beirut was seeing rents increase because of a sharp undersupply of homes.

EuroCost said four new cities had joined the ranking as their commercial importance increased.

Sydney became the 14th most expensive place to rent, up from its rank of 41st last year, as the Australian dollar appreciated against the euro.

Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo is now the second most expensive city in Africa at 18th, behind Luanda, Angola, which is ranked fifth.

Rio de Janeiro made the biggest jump, to 19th from 71st last year.

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18 responses to “Beirut is the 10th most expensive city”

  1. Fadi Abboud Avatar
    Fadi Abboud

    is this supposed to be a good thing?

    1. georges_all_mighty14993 Avatar
      georges_all_mighty14993

      only if you are related to bill gates, by blood. no, bud, it ain’t.

  2. amazing for a country with no electricity, security, political stability, running water, an airport in the middle of hell, city that smells like a massive fart bomb went off in it and ruled by a militia. I guess the worse the country gets, the more expensive it gets, could you imagine what food shortage and war will do? it will be ranked first in the world

    its so funny that half of beirut smells like $hit on a good day and yet its so expensive, so beirut economy relies on if ree7it il kh@rr@ intensifies, the properties will sky rocket further. Soon kh@rra will be a commodity there and will be traded at the BSE

    Guys get ready for this IPO! 🙂

    yeeeee shooo claaaaaaasssssss

    1. georges_all_mighty14993 Avatar
      georges_all_mighty14993

      loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool!!!!!!

    2.  Avatar
      Anonymous

      Hahaha I could firmly say that made my day.

    3.  Avatar
      Anonymous

      Hahaha I could firmly say that made my day.

    4.  Avatar
      Anonymous

      Hahaha I could firmly say that made my day.

  3. Sebouh you are always right on the money my friend, unfortunately thats what happens when thieves run these institutions. Everyone knows its foreign money thats inflating libon, and should war break out, all these expats dumping their cash there will take off with their $$$$$

  4. Thank you all who stole money from outside and brought it to Lebanon, spending and causing inflation so that your average $1000 a month worker can live in an expensive city that really has nothing to offer in terms of jobs, welfare and social programs like the west.

    1. lebster you have hit this with pinpoint accuracy!

      all the thieves who sucked all the meat of the bones in dubai with their credit scams and thefts have turned beirut into this. You gotta love the “coincidence” when dubai was sinking, libon was skyrocketing.

  5. Tarie Al Fanarie Avatar
    Tarie Al Fanarie

    Hate to break it to you folks. Enjoy the high prices while you can. But when the war starts again, it will go down faster than the speed of light. Just when things go well for Lebanon. Syria, Iran and hezbollah will manage to screw it up somehow.

  6. yes it may happen but it will go back up again as there is a lot of arab are buying in lebanon they could be scared of iran moving in to the gulf so at list they will have something in lebanon even if the price drop it will claim up back again

  7. Beirut is extremely expensive due to tourist from all around the world, Who pay top dollar for apartments and entertainment, Housing costs in Beirut are due to lack of vacant land, no more land to build on!!

  8. georges_all_mighty14993 Avatar
    georges_all_mighty14993

    loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool!!!!!!

  9. georges_all_mighty14993 Avatar
    georges_all_mighty14993

    only if you are related to bill gates, by blood. no, bud, it ain’t.

  10. Beiruti Avatar

    Hahaha I could firmly say that made my day.

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