A third of Asian millionaires who live, work or spend more than half their time outside their countries of origin prefer Singapore, a survey shows
A survey has shown that a third of Asian millionaires who live, work or spend more than half their time outside their countries of origin prefer Singapore, compared with 24% of those who pick Hong Kong. The survey was carried out byRBC Wealth Management.
The city’s quality of life is also cited as its main draw, according to the survey, with 89% of those mobile millionaires surveyed saying this is important. In addition, 83% of them cited the city’s political stability as another important aspect of decision to move to Singapore. Infrastructure and education opportunity were also given as reasons to live there.
‘Singapore always has this quality as a safe haven, not just for your money, but also for your family,’ said Wai Ho Leong, a senior regional economist at Barclays Plc in Singapore, in an article published in Bloomberg.com.
He said that younger professionals tend to try Hong Kong for a few years, but once they have kids, they southern Chinese city’s pollution, lack of green space, and crowdedness get to them.
Among the preferred assets of the mobile rich, real estate tops the list. According to the survey, 23% of those in Singapore reported a ‘high propensity’ for property investment, compared with 7% in North America.
A report by the Boston Consulting Group published in May 31 showed that Singapore posted a 14% increase in millionaire households in 2011, putting the proportion of millionaire homes in the city at 17%, the highest in the world. Of the city-state’s population of 5.3 million, about 2 million are foreigners.
