Knight Frank’s latest analysis - Commuter cities: how do housing costs and travel times compare? -looks at the average commuting times, housing costs and transport methods across eight major cities.
“The decision whether to buy a property in the city centre with a minimal commute or a more affordable property on the outskirts, where travel costs tend to be higher, is one that millions of commuters toy with every year - and one we thought merited further investigation,” says Everett-Allen.Kate Everett-Allen, International Residential Research for Knight Frank, says the findings show that although Los Angeles and Jakarta compare favourably to Hong Kong when it comes to property costs, commuting times can be cumbersome. Rome and Shanghai are all-round performers - offering both comparatively low housing costs and short commutes.
“The decision whether to buy a property in the city centre with a minimal commute or a more affordable property on the outskirts, where travel costs tend to be higher, is one that millions of commuters toy with every year - and one we thought merited further investigation,” says Everett-Allen.
“Our analysis measures the time taken to travel to each city’s Central Business District (CBD) from the city’s respective prime residential area - for example, in London’s case from Marylebone to the City - and the most common method of transport adopted by commuters.
London versus New York
Comparing the world’s top two financial centres, New York (£1 723 per square foot in Midtown Plaza District) marginally edges London (£1 800 per square foot in Marylebone) on housing costs, and commuters also enjoy a significantly shorter 10 minute journey to Manhattan’s CBD than the 25 minutes to the City of London.
“However, with the introduction of Crossrail in London in 2018 we expect New York’s competitive advantage to narrow,” she says.
Hong Kong
“Our analysis measures the time taken to travel to each city’s Central Business District (CBD) from the city’s respective prime residential area - for example, in London’s case from Marylebone to the City - and the most common method of transport adopted by commuters," says Everett-Allen.In Hong Kong, Mid-Levels Central is home to the highest housings costs of all the prime markets analysed (£2 716 per square foot) and a typical commute to the CBD takes 15 minutes. Walking combined with a bus journey is the most common mode of transport here.
Rome
In Rome it would take you roughly five minutes - the shortest travel time of all eight cities - to travel from the prime district of Rione Colonna to the city’s CBD. The cost of housing is also significantly less at £807 per square foot
Shanghai
Shanghai also compares favourably. Here the journey from the upmarket area of Xintiandi (£943 per square foot) to The People’s Square takes only 10 minutes by metro.
Lastly, the three cities which offer the lowest housing costs in our survey are Jakarta at £493 per square foot in Menteng, Los Angeles at £669 per square foot in Beverly Hills, and Mumbai at £750 per square foot in Napean Sea Road - coincidentally, these are also the only cities in which driving is seen to be the most common travel method to get to work.
“Taking the analysis one step further, we have also compared several key commuter locations for each city, assuming the CBD is the place of work in each case,” says Everett-Allen.
Click here to view the report.
