119-Scheme Data Study: What Does the Same Budget Buy in London, Dubai and Athens?
For Turkish investors the cost of buying a home abroad is most often discussed only through the price tag. Yet when purchase taxes, annual income tax and property tax are brought together, the ranking can change.
For prices, taxes and the whole buying process, see our guide: Overseas Property Investment Guide
At capital.works® we examined the 119 new build schemes in our portfolio by the same method: price per square metre, entry price and the tax burden on the same budget. In the picture that emerged, some of the common assumptions were not confirmed.
- A budget of £300,000 buys a median of 32 m², Dubai’de 61 m² in London. The same money means roughly twice the area in Dubai.
- In Dubai and the UAE the median entry price is £215,000, Londra’da £482,500. The entry ticket is less than half of London.
- On the other hand the annual tax burden in the United Kingdom is far lower than supposed. Thanks to the double taxation agreement signed with Türkiye, Turkish nationals can benefit from the personal income tax allowance in the United Kingdom.
- In our portfolio the same budget buys 56 m² in Athens. Our Greek schemes qualify for the Golden Visa at the €250,000 tier and open the door to residence rights in the European Union.
Answers to the most common questions on this topic: Is Buying a Home in London a Good Idea?
capital.works® · a 119 scheme data study
Area bought with £300,000:
32 m² in London, 56 m² in Athens, 61 m² in Dubai
Portfolio median, based on the developer's published entry price and flat size, September 2026.
Method
The study covers the 119 schemes on sale in the capital.works® portfolio as at 8 September 2026. 119 projeyi on sale in the capital.works® portfolio as of 22 August 2026. Records with complete price and floor area information were taken. For each scheme the Entry price published by the developer and the apartment size corresponding to that price were used.
For comparability every figure was converted to sterling (1 AED = 0.215 £, 1 EUR = 0.855 £; the rates from first publication, held fixed so the periods stay comparable). Instead of the mean we used the medyan was used, so that a few high priced schemes would not distort the picture.
The tax calculations were made on the assumption of a property worth £300,000 and £15,000 of gross annual rental income. It was assumed that the buyer is resident in Türkiye, is a Turkish national and already owns a home in their own country (so that it counts as a second home in the United Kingdom).
Finding 1: the same budget, different floor areas
The price per square metre sets out the clearest distinction between the markets. In the table below we give the median of our portfolio together with the published market average of that market. That way it can be seen how far the portfolio represents the market.
| Market | Schemes | Portfolio median | Market average | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 50 | £9,341 | £9,400 | -1% | |
| England (outside London) | 25 | £5,714 | no data | ||
| Dubai and the UAE | 35 | £4,914 | £4,300 | +14% | |
| Greece | 9 | £5,344 | £2,736 | +95% |
Market averages: London new build £9,400/m²; the Dubai apartment average AED 20,000/m²; Athens overall €3,200/m² (the centre €2,770, the southern suburbs €4,167). For consistency all figures were converted into sterling.
According to the market averages a budget of £300,000 buys roughly 32 m², Dubai’de 70 m², Atina’da 110 m² buys. Measured on the schemes in our portfolio it is 32 sq m in London, 61 sq m in Dubai, 52 sq m in the United Kingdom outside London and 56 sq m in Greece; the difference comes from the portfolio sitting somewhat above the market average.
Finding 2: the ladder of entry prices
The lowest amount needed to enter the portfolio shows a difference of up to fourfold between the markets.
| Market | Schemes | Lowest | Medyan | Highest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 50 | £315,000 | £482,500 | £1,160,000 |
| England (outside London) | 25 | £120,000 | £375,000 | £1,175,000 |
| Dubai and the UAE | 35 | £118,250 | £215,000 | £1,911,111 |
| Greece | 9 | £213,750 | £213,750 | £594,225 |
Finding 3: For Turkish investors, the UK tax burden is lower than expected
This is the most surprising part of the study. The common view is that the UK is heavy on tax. For Turkish investors, the figures do not support that.
| Country | Purchase taxes | Annual tax | Ten year total | As a proportion of the budget | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | £26,000 | £486 | £30,860 | %10.3 | |
| Dubai and the UAE | £13,010 | £0 | £13,010 | %4.3 | |
| Greece | £17,670 | £3,137 | £49,043 | %16.3 |
Purchase taxes: in the United Kingdom stamp duty (including the second home and non-resident surcharges), in Dubai the land department transfer fee and charges, in Greece the transfer tax together with the notary, solicitor and land registry costs.
Finding 4: what stays in your pocket over ten years
For an investor who holds the same property for ten years and lets it, the picture is this:
| Country | Ten year gross rent | Tax | Net rental income |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | £150,000 | £4,860 | £145,140 |
| Dubai and the UAE | £150,000 | £0 | £150,000 |
| Greece | £150,000 | £31,373 | £118,627 |
Dubai leads, as expected, with its zero tax structure. In the UK, a Turkish investor's annual tax stays very light thanks to the personal allowance. In Greece, rental income is taxed on a sliding scale and there is an annual ENFIA property tax. On the other hand, among the countries in this study Greece is the only option that grants residence rights in the European Union through property investment; the value of the investment should be weighed together with that right.
What the result means
This picture does not give a single answer to the question "which country is better"; the answer changes according to which question is being asked.
Net yield is your priority, Dubai comes to the fore: a low entry price, a low transfer cost, no tax on rental income. Security of capital and institutional order if you are looking for that, the United Kingdom, despite its high entry cost, carries a rather light annual burden for a Turkish investor. The right of residence in the European Union is your goal, Greece stands out: the Golden Visa gives the investor and their family the right to live in Greece and visa-free travel across the Schengen area. The entry ticket is also cheaper than many assume: our Greek schemes are conversions of existing buildings into homes, so they fall within the €250,000 Golden Visa tier, where no minimum floor area applies.
The limits of the study
This is not a market index. The sample consists of new build schemes in the capital.works® portfolio; it does not cover the second hand market, the social housing segment or developers outside the portfolio. Because the entry units on the Greek schemes are small studios, the portfolio price per square metre in that market comes out high against the market as a whole.
Our portfolio holds nine schemes in Greece and their entry units are mostly studios of 33 to 40 square metres. Since the price per square metre rises on a small unit, the portfolio median on the Greek row should not be read as a guide to that market; the published market average on that row should be used instead. The tax comparison is unaffected by this limitation, because it rests on a generic £300,000 property and on Greek tax law rather than on any single scheme. Tax figures rest on the stated assumptions and vary with personal circumstances. Exchange rates are those of the calculation date. No figure here replaces investment advice or tax advice.
For the press
The data in this study may be used freely in news reports and analysis provided the source is cited. The attribution can be made as follows:
