With considerable discussion about Vietnam’s buoyant commercial real-estate sector, Knight Frank Vietnam today released an index spanning 20 key global cities, taking average rental rates in each and then asks a simple question: “What can I rent with USD 1,000? per month”

The KFVN1000 Index draws upon the global databanks of the company, and then factors in local currencies, local rental terms and conditions, and local space measurement systems, and then distils all data into a common currency (USD) and a common area system (metric) to offer a meaningful dataset spanning all included cities.

Vietnam’s two major cities prove among the most affordable places to do business, with Hanoi offering 36.2 square metres of Grade A office space to renters, and Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) offering 20.9.

“HCMC’s supply bottleneck was clearly apparent in our KFVN1000 study, which showed the southern metropolis offering in at just over half of the floor-space of the capital, and placing it in the company of cities such as Berlin and Taipei in terms of what USD 1,000 can lease in terms of Grade A office space,” said Mr. Leo Nguyen, Knight Frank Vietnam’s Director of Occupier Strategy & Solutions.

At the other end of the spectrum, space-constricted Hong Kong proved itself the world’s most expensive city, with a monthly rent of USD 1,000 offering just 6.4 square metres in central locations. London’s West End and New York occupy second and third places, offering 7.0 square metres and 8.6 square metres respectively.

Unsurprisingly Singapore proved itself Southeast Asia’s priciest city for office rental. Placing seventh overall, the island city offers tenants a little over 12 square metres for each USD 1,000 they pay to rent their office space. HCMC (20.9) placed second of the eight cities studied in the region, with Bangkok (30.5), Manila (34.4), Hanoi (36.2) and Jakarta (40.4) rounding out the top six in the region.

On the whole, Southeast Asia emerges as one of the most affordable parts of the world to set up office space, with all five of the most affordable cities on the index coming from the region. Kuala Lumpur’s 70.2 square metres/USD 1,000 sees it the best value in the region, ahead of Phnom Penh, Jakarta and Hanoi.

Full results are as follows: