An annual survey of the world¿s ¿most expensive¿ cities released today by Mercer Human Resource Consulting indicates that Moscow has replaced Tokyo at the top of the list. Indeed, Tokyo fell to third place as Seoul rose to second place.
The ¿cost-of-living¿survey has a ¿base¿ New York City score of 100. Moscow¿s score this year was 123.9 The survey includes 144 cities and measures the comparative costs of more than 200 items including housing, transport, good, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
The report noted that ¿there have been some significant changes in the rankings this year which are primarily due to exchange rate fluctuations, in particular the strengthening of the US dollar."
New York City continued to be the most expensive city in the United States and climbed three places in the international ranking to 10th place, the report found. Los Angeles was ranked 29th, San Francisco 34th, Chicago 38th, Washington DC 77th place and Winston Salem 124th.
High accommodation costs in Moscow drove up its ranking ¿as the recent property bloom has driven up rental prices for expatriates,¿ according to Anna Krotova, a senior researcher at Mercer. London was the second most expensive city in Europe and 5th highest in the survey, ¿but the strengthening of the dollar against the pound means London has dropped two places since last year,¿ she said.
Beijing ranked 14th and Shanghai 20th.
Mercer Human Resource Consulting also released its annual ¿quality of living¿ ranking of cities today. This report is based on 39 factors in 10 categories in more than 235 cities.
New York City is again the base city with a score of 100 and it fell once place this year to 46th.
The top three remained unchanged from last year: Zurich (108), Geneva (107.9), and Vancouver (107.4). Vienna, Auckland, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Munich, Bern and Sydney rounded out the top ten. Other cities ranked this year as follows: Toronto (15th), Honolulu (27th), San Francisco (28th), Paris (33rd), Boston (36th), London (39th), Washington DC (41st), Seattle (47th), and Pittsburgh (49th).
The ¿cost-of-living¿survey has a ¿base¿ New York City score of 100. Moscow¿s score this year was 123.9 The survey includes 144 cities and measures the comparative costs of more than 200 items including housing, transport, good, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
The report noted that ¿there have been some significant changes in the rankings this year which are primarily due to exchange rate fluctuations, in particular the strengthening of the US dollar."
New York City continued to be the most expensive city in the United States and climbed three places in the international ranking to 10th place, the report found. Los Angeles was ranked 29th, San Francisco 34th, Chicago 38th, Washington DC 77th place and Winston Salem 124th.
High accommodation costs in Moscow drove up its ranking ¿as the recent property bloom has driven up rental prices for expatriates,¿ according to Anna Krotova, a senior researcher at Mercer. London was the second most expensive city in Europe and 5th highest in the survey, ¿but the strengthening of the dollar against the pound means London has dropped two places since last year,¿ she said.
Beijing ranked 14th and Shanghai 20th.
Mercer Human Resource Consulting also released its annual ¿quality of living¿ ranking of cities today. This report is based on 39 factors in 10 categories in more than 235 cities.
New York City is again the base city with a score of 100 and it fell once place this year to 46th.
The top three remained unchanged from last year: Zurich (108), Geneva (107.9), and Vancouver (107.4). Vienna, Auckland, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Munich, Bern and Sydney rounded out the top ten. Other cities ranked this year as follows: Toronto (15th), Honolulu (27th), San Francisco (28th), Paris (33rd), Boston (36th), London (39th), Washington DC (41st), Seattle (47th), and Pittsburgh (49th).
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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