Paris has beaten London for the second year in a row to retain first place in terms of European property development and investment prospects for 2007, according to a report launched at the Urban Land Institute (ULI) European conference in the French capital on Tuesday.
Paris has beaten London for the second year in a row to retain first place in terms of European property development and investment prospects for 2007, according to a report launched at the Urban Land Institute (ULI) European conference in the French capital on Tuesday.
Despite ranking lowest for city risk and topping the list for prospective rental growth, the British capital is in second place in the rankings for city return/risk prospects in the report 'Emerging Trends in Real Estate® Europe 2007'. The report is published by ULI and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
London appears to have lost out to Paris due to the potential impact of major developments to be undertaken in and around the British capital. 'High construction costs due to demands created by major projects including Heathrow Terminal 5, King's Cross and the 2012 Olympics could dampen new development and investment prospects for London over the coming years,' ULI said in a press release.
The authors of the fourth annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate® Europe interviewed almost 400 senior executives in the real estate sector to identify Europe's top cities for real estate investment. The report also looks at the key challenges in the market.
Paris retained first place from last year as survey respondents pointed to the city's economic stability and sustainability, in addition to its status as a global gateway as the main reasons for its top status. 'Ample opportunities for urban regeneration and redevelopment in the city, together with a balanced supply/demand of projects combine to create ideal conditions for investment in the French capital,' ULI said.
Bill Kistler, president of ULI Europe, remarked: 'Some of the strongest markets in 2007, such as London, are now becoming 'hold' markets because they are close to the end of their cycle and there is a risk that yields will soften.' The full copy of Emerging Trends in Real Estate® Europe 2007 is available at www.europe.uli.org
City return/risk prospects
2007 City 2006 Change
1 Paris 1 -
2 London 2 -
3 Stockholm 6 +13
4 Munich 17 +13
5 Lyon 8 +3
6 Helsinki 3 -3
7 Madrid 4 -3
8 Barcelona 5 -3
9 Hamburg 14 +5
10 Copenhagen 9 -1
12 Edinburgh 10 -2
Click on the link below to read more about the ULI/PwC report