Depending on where you live, $1 million is either a lot of money to spend on real estate or it’s not enough to buy you anything worthwhile. A million is going to buy you a much nicer piece of real estate in central Florida than it will in Manhattan, for example. The cost of living across the world differs significantly, and nothing makes that more apparent than a comparison of what type of home you can purchase for $1 million in different cities. Luxury real estate costs, and it costs a lot.
$1 Million High and Low End
If you choose to live in a city such as Monaco, you’re going to pay dearly for real estate. In fact, you’re going to pay more per square foot in Monaco than anywhere else in the world. At a cost of $6,800 per square foot, spending $1 in Monaco will get you a 147 square foot apartment – this is barely the size of most bedrooms in the US. However, in Cape Town, spending $1 million on a home means you’ll get just over 2,100 square feet of living space. This might seem like a lot more space for your money, but at the average cost of only $60 per square foot in Central Florida, you can build a home with more than 16,000 square feet of living space for the same $1 million.
$1 Million Meets in the Middle
If you want to live in a gorgeous city and make your $1 million luxury real estate purchase go a little further than it does in Monaco, you might consider something in the middle of the luxury real estate spectrum. For example, in New York City you can purchase a 400 square foot apartment for $1 million. It’s far from a luxury mansion, but it’s still a sizable apartment in the heart of one of the most beloved cities in the world. Another beloved city in which to reside is Paris. At $2,400 per square foot, your million dollars will buy approximately 416 square feet of living space. What your million dollars buys all depends on what you want. If you don’t mind living away from the biggest, most glamorous cities in the world, you’ll get a lot more home for your money. However, luxury real estate in the most famous, sophisticated cities in the world is going to cost far more than $1 million.
The graphs below, courtesy of Knight Frank, are a good example of what $1 million purchases in various cities around the world.
Here’s a square footage graph
(Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)
