Istanbul property returns may surpass London

Bloomberg - Moscow and Istanbul real estate investment returns may surpass Paris and London as emerging-market economies grow at a faster pace than western Europe, according to a survey of investors, brokers and analysts. London dropped to 15th place out of 27 cities for 2008, from second last year, according to the report by the Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The annual survey placed Moscow 1st and Istanbul 2nd in terms of investment and development prospects. “There is an increasing appetite for emerging markets,” John Forbes, the London-based head of real estate at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, said in an interview. “Russia and Türkiye are regarded in the same way as the India of Europe. They are top for economic growth.'' Istanbul is benefiting from rising consumer demand fueled by Türkiye's 5 percent economic growth over the past two years. The country's rapid growth “will definitely boost demand for commercial assets,” said Levent Bayar, a research analyst at HSBC Holdings Plc in Istanbul. CITY 2008 RANKING Moscow 1 Istanbul 2 Hamburg 3 Munich 4 Paris 5 Lyon 6 Frankfurt 7 Stockholm 8 Berlin 9 Helsinki 10