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Millionaires are eyeing European cities as they look to relocate, but London doesn’t make the top five, according to a new report.
About 83% of high-net-worth individuals (defined as those with an annual income of $1 million or more) are considering moving to the country because of the cultural and economic opportunities urban living offers, Knight Frank’s European Lifestyle ReportPublished on Wednesday, revealed. Meanwhile, 17% of respondents said they preferred the natural beauty and slower pace of life in the countryside and resorts.
Real estate consultancy Knight Frank surveyed 700 high-net-worth individuals from 11 different countries, including the UK and the US, to find out their views on Europe’s most attractive cities and resorts. It ranks 10 cities and resorts based on the European Lifestyle Monitor, which evaluates five key indicators: economy, quality of life, environment, infrastructure and mobility, and human capital.
Paris tops the list, excelling in areas such as economic and human capital, including factors such as universities, corporate headquarters and cultural investment. However, London – often considered the center of the super-rich – didn’t even make the top five, ranking just seventh.
Henley & Partners, a consultancy that tracks immigration trends, said a record 128,000 millionaires will plan to relocate globally in 2024, up from 120,000 in 2023, according to a Knight Frank report.
Additionally, Knight Frank found that 19% of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (those with assets of US$30 million or more) plan to apply for a second passport or obtain citizenship of another country.
The report says millionaires’ top priorities when relocating are security and privacy, followed by employment, taxes and education. Gen Z and Millennials tend to prioritize employment, while older generations are more focused on taxes.
“For high-net-worth individuals, security and taxes are more important than visa issues when relocating. This concern is not surprising as geopolitical volatility and privacy challenges intensify in the digital age,” the report states.
“Geopolitical tensions and policy changes are driving HNWIs to relocate to more favorable jurisdictions,” Kate Everett-Allen, head of European residential research at Knight Frank, said in the report District. “The rapid withdrawal of CHF 1.5 billion ($1.8 billion) from Credit Suisse by wealthy account holders at the end of 2022 highlights how quickly wealthy individuals respond to perceived financial risks.”
Top 5
According to a Knight Frank report, the top five European cities that high net worth individuals are considering relocating to in 2024 are as follows:
- Paris
- Berlin
- barcelona
- vienna
- madrid
This follows a separate report from Henry Partners that showed that the U.K. The UK is no longer a haven for millionaires, with the UK expected to lose at least 9,500 high net worth individuals by 2024, up from 4,200 the previous year.
Henry pointed out that in the 1950s and early 2000s, a large number of wealthy families from Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East flocked to the UK, but after Brexit, the UK lost 16,500 millionaires to immigration between 2017 and 2023.
A major reason behind the exodus is the UK’s recent cancellation of “Non-resident” tax status Previously, this meant foreign citizens were not taxed on their international income, which was particularly popular among billionaires.
Other reasons include potential increases in private school tuition and high real estate taxes. The changes could lead to a 17% drop in the number of millionaires in the UK, from 3,061,553 in 2023 to 2,542,464 in 2028, according to the UBS Global Wealth Report published in June.
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