Moscow, the Russian capital, is the most expensive city in the world for cost of living followed by London, UK and Seoul, South Korea in the second and third position. The findings are based on the annual Cost of Living Survey conducted by Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Moscow tops the list for the second consecutive year while London has moved up from its third place last year.

The survey covering 143 cities across six continents compared the cost of over 200 household items in each city including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. MNCs and governments use this cost of living survey to determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees.

Here are the top 15 most expensive cities in the world for cost of living, according to the survey.

1. Moscow, Russia

2. London, United Kingdom

3. Seoul, South Korea

4. Tokyo, Japan

5. Hong Kong, Hong Kong

6. Copenhagen, Denmark

7. Geneva, Switzerland

8. Osaka, Japan

9. Zurich, Switzerland

10. Oslo, Norway

11. Milan, Italy

12. St. Petersburg, Russia

13. Paris, France

14. Singapore, Singapore

15. New York City, U.S.

Of the six continents, Europe dominated the list with six of its cities in the top ten and about 30 in the top 50 rankings. Asian cities also figured mostly in the top 10 most expensive cities, lead by Seoul, South Korea. Five Africa cities were placed in the top 50, lead by Douala, Cameroon in 24th place. The least expensive city was Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay, for the fifth consecutive year, among the 50 cities ranked by Mercer. But none of the cities of Latin America or Canada made it to the top 50. U.S.A had only two cities ? New York City and Los Angeles (42nd rank) featured in the top 50, owing to a weak U.S. dollar.

If you are interested in buying a home, condominium, or any other type of real estate in any of these cities, be sure to contact a local Realtor who can advise you about local market factors.