Yahoo Finance Inside the country where one third of its population are millionaires
Monaco has a very unique problem: it’s one of the world’s densest countries and it’s only growing denser.
The reason? Millionaires.
The tiny sovereign city state is home to 7,619 millionaires per kilometer and more want to call it home.
Almost one in three Monaco citizens are millionaires, and according to the 2019 Knight Frank Wealth report, that number has increased by 12 per cent between 2013 and 2018.
The surging popularity of the country - which is only 60 per cent the size of New York City’s Central Park - has led to an unusual development.
Architects and designers began building an island near Monaco to house future residents in 2015.
The 15 acre island will house luxury apartment blocks, a marina and 120 luxury homes.
For now, the average home in Monaco is a staggering $6,535 per square foot - more expensive than Hong Kong and New York.
“Prices for the best penthouses can exceed €50 million (AU$80.8 million), and most ‘normal’ apartments are priced between €3 million and €20 million,” Alexander Kraft, chairman and CEO of Sotheby’s International Realty France– Monaco told Mansion Global.
Part of the sovereign state’s allure is its famous casinos. However, gambling is illegal for residents so the casinos are populated only by tourists.
While residents can’t gamble, they enjoy the highest life expectancy in the world at 85.8 years.
And they also don’t pay income tax.
According to the CIA, Monaco has no natural resources.
But the CIA also said poverty does not exist in Monaco.
For many, however, the allure of Monaco is not in its wealthy population or casinos but its storied history.
Famous actress Grace Kelly joined the Grimaldi royal family on 19 April 1956 when she married Prince Rainier.
Today, tourists and residents walk the same balmy Mediterranean streets Kelly did during her time in Monaco.
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