An average price tag of $7,151 per square metre, makes Dubai fifteenth most expensive real estate markets in the world, according to a recent study.  That’s still cheap, though, compared to the leader: Monte Carlo, where a top-end apartment costs on average $47,578 per square metre.

Property in second-place Moscow costs $20,853 per square metre, followed by London at an average of $20,756.

Property research group Global Property Guide collected the data based on the average price of a 120 square metre high-end used apartment in the city centres of more than 110 cities around the world during 2008.  The US dollar exchange rate used is that of January 27, 2009.

Many of the world’s more expensive properties are now returning to more realistic levels, and Dubai is no exception: Dubai property prices slumped by 23 percent during the last quarter of 2008, with villas showing a more marked decline than apartments, according to a report published by HSBC last month. Some reports suggest that real estate prices have fallen by as much as 35 to 50 percent in developments such as the Dubai Marina, Downtown Burj Dubai, and the Palm Jumeirah.