In this episode, Damien and Jeremy discuss the 2024 Global Liveability Index, and what it suggests about Australia's long-term attractiveness as a place to invest in property.
What Is the Global Liveability Index?
Jeremy explains the index is produced by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a London-based organisation, which scores somewhere between 150 and 200 cities worldwide each year across five categories: stability, healthcare, education, culture and environment, and infrastructure. He notes the EIU has published this index for many years, and that Melbourne was ranked the world's most liveable city for six consecutive years at one point.
2024 Rankings
At the top of the 2024 list, Vienna ranks first with an index score of 98.4 (perfect scores of 100 in four of the five categories), marking its third consecutive year at number one. Copenhagen ranks second, Zurich third, and Melbourne fourth. Calgary, Geneva, Sydney (equal seventh with Vancouver), and Osaka (tied for ninth with Auckland) round out the rest of the top group discussed.
Jeremy highlights that in the prior year's list, Australia had four cities in the top 16, and this year has five: Melbourne (4th), Sydney (7th), Adelaide (11th), Perth (15th), and Brisbane (16th). Given the relatively small pool of roughly 150–200 cities assessed globally out of many thousands worldwide, he considers this a remarkable result, and argues it supports a reasonable case that Australia is among the best countries in the world to live in, and by extension, a sound long-term place to hold property.
Liveability, Tax, and Lifestyle Trade-Offs
Damien observes that many of the top-ranked cities are in higher-tax Western countries, noting that in Copenhagen, for example, income earners face a tax rate of 55–56% beyond roughly AUD $121,000. Jeremy suggests there may be a correlation between higher taxation and greater liveability, possibly reflecting how those tax revenues are invested back into infrastructure and services. Damien shares his own perspective, having previously considered living overseas (referencing his Croatian heritage) and having worked with clients based in Europe who invest in Australian property, framing Australia's combination of strong earning potential and liveability as a genuine advantage that supports both a comfortable domestic lifestyle and international travel.
Damien also notes he lived in Melbourne for four and a half years and reflects on the city's number four ranking with some surprise, given the disruption of COVID-era lockdowns occurred not long before this ranking, though acknowledges he isn't certain how the EIU weighs recent events into its scoring methodology.
The Other End of the List
Jeremy notes that historically, the lowest-ranked cities on the index tend to be affected by war or corruption, citing Ukraine and Syria as examples. He uses this, somewhat wryly, to illustrate the flip side of the liveability-price relationship: if a genuinely liveable, stable country is going to command a premium, then expensive property in Australia may simply reflect genuine liveability rather than the market being fundamentally "broken." He extends the comparison to Monaco (an expensive, well-regarded place to live) and to variation within Sydney itself, where more liveable pockets of the city tend to command higher property prices, reinforcing his view that price and liveability are closely linked.
Historical Rankings and Real Estate Transparency
Jeremy shares a brief history of past rankings: Vienna, Melbourne, and Sydney held the top three spots in 2019; Auckland led in 2021 (with Melbourne equal eighth and Adelaide third that year); and Melbourne again ranked around equal tenth in 2022, showing a consistent long-term presence near the top of the list. He also references a separate index he recalls from previous years, a Real Estate Transparency index assessing sovereign and political risk to property ownership internationally, on which Australia and New Zealand both ranked highly, reinforcing the stability theme.
Cost of Living Comparison
Using a cost-of-living comparison tool (benchmarked against New York at 100), Jeremy shows Sydney ranking 33rd overall, with Zurich and Geneva appearing among the most expensive cities globally. Comparing Sydney directly against Zagreb, Croatia, as an example, Jeremy and Damien note meaningfully cheaper everyday costs in Zagreb (citing examples like restaurant meals and groceries), alongside a large gap in average net monthly salary (Sydney around $6,300 versus Zagreb around $2,400), illustrating why Australians earning locally can enjoy strong purchasing power when travelling or living temporarily overseas.
Key Takeaways for Investors
Jeremy's overall takeaway is confidence in continuing to invest in Australian property, given the country's combination of strong liveability rankings, price stability, and low relative political and economic risk. He argues there's little evidence to suggest this long-term trend of relative Australian outperformance will reverse, given it's been sustained for decades, though he flags affordability, whether wage growth can keep pace with rising prices, as the main long-term consideration to watch.
On affordability specifically for younger or first-time buyers, both hosts point to rentvesting as a genuine strategy: renting in a desirable but expensive city like Sydney while investing in a stronger-growth market elsewhere (citing Perth's recent strong growth relative to Sydney as a practical example of the benefit of this approach). Damien stresses this requires a willingness to make short-term sacrifices during the accumulation phase, and shares a practical approach to renting strategically: looking at areas with higher and rising vacancy rates (rather than fixating on one competitive suburb) to improve the odds of securing a rental at a reasonable price, before eventually moving into a more desired living situation once a stronger asset base is established.
On the common question of whether to buy a unit to live in versus renting and investing elsewhere, Damien notes owning removes the risk of being asked to move by a landlord, but that this needs to be weighed against a unit's typically weaker capital growth outlook and ongoing supply risk compared to a house purchased in a stronger-performing market elsewhere.
Both close by cautioning against excessive greed or over-aggressive accumulation, Jeremy shares that holding 16 properties at one point in his own journey (a period of "catch-up" investing after a later start) became genuinely difficult to manage from an administrative standpoint, and that a more modest, well-planned portfolio (Damien suggests two to three properties as often sufficient for most people's goals) tends to be a healthier target than chasing an ever-larger number of properties.
Closing Thoughts
Damien and Jeremy close by encouraging listeners to like, comment, subscribe, and reach out via email with questions, noting they're happy to help point listeners in the right direction based on their own experience.