Datastream
Ranked: The World’s Least Affordable Cities to Buy a Home
The Briefing
- For the 10th year in a row, Hong Kong is the world’s least affordable housing market
- The U.S. is home to a mixture of the most and least affordable housing markets
Ranked: The World’s Least Affordable Cities to Buy a Home
In certain parts of the world, housing prices have risen much faster than household incomes, making home ownership increasingly more difficult for the average Joe.
Using data from Demographia published in 2020, this graphic looks at some of the world’s most expensive housing markets.
The Least Affordable Housing Markets
It’s worth noting that this data looks at housing affordability specifically for middle-income earners. While it’s far from globally exhaustive, it measures affordability in 309 major metropolitan areas across Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, the U.S., and the UK.
In this study, a city’s affordability is calculated by taking its median housing price and dividing it by the median household income.
- Moderately Unaffordable: 3.1 to 4.0
- Seriously Unaffordable: 4.1 to 5.0
- Severely Unaffordable: 5.1+
All the cities on this graphic classify as severely unaffordable. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hong Kong is the most unaffordable housing market—scoring 20.8 to take the top spot.
| Housing Market | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China (SAR) | 20.8 |
| Vancouver, BC | 🇨🇦 Canada | 11.9 |
| Sydney, NSW | 🇦🇺 Australia | 11.0 |
| Melbourne, VIC | 🇦🇺 Australia | 9.5 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 🇺🇸 United States | 9.0 |
| Auckland | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | 8.6 |
| Toronto, ON | 🇨🇦 Canada | 8.6 |
| San Jose, CA | 🇺🇸 United States | 8.5 |
| San Francisco, CA | 🇺🇸 United States | 8.4 |
| London (Greater London Authority) | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 8.2 |
| Honolulu, HI | 🇺🇸 United States | 8.0 |
| San Diego, CA | 🇺🇸 United States | 7.3 |
| Adelaide, SA | 🇦🇺 Australia | 6.9 |
| Bournemouth & Dorset | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 6.9 |
Home to 7.5 million people, Hong Kong has ranked as the world’s least affordable city for 10 consecutive years. Because of its steep housing prices, nano apartments have risen in popularity over the last decade.
The Most Affordable Housing Markets
Three of the most expensive housing markets are in America, but at the same time, the country also contains some of the most affordable markets in the eight-country study, too.
In fact, the top 10 most affordable cities are all in America:
| City | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Rochester, NY | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.5 |
| Cleveland, OH | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.7 |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.7 |
| Buffalo, NY | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.8 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.8 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.8 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.8 |
| Hartford, CT | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.9 |
| Indianapolis. IN | 🇺🇸 United States | 2.9 |
| Tulsa, OK | 🇺🇸 United States | 3.0 |
Keep in mind, these figures are from Q3’2019. Considering the pandemic-induced suburban shuffle that’s been going on in some of America’s major housing markets, this list could look a bit different in Demographia’s next report.
>>Like this? Then you might like this article on The 10 Most Expensive Cities in the World
Where does this data come from?
Source: Demographia
Details: Affordability score is calculated by taking a city’s median housing price and dividing it by the median household income. Anything over 5.1 is considered severely unaffordable
Notes: Data includes 309 metropolitan markets across eight countries, including Australia, Canada, the U.K., and the U.S., as of the third quarter of 2019
Economy
Charted: Public Trust in the Federal Reserve
Public trust in the Federal Reserve chair has hit its lowest point in 20 years. Get the details in this infographic.
The Briefing
- Gallup conducts an annual poll to gauge the U.S. public’s trust in the Federal Reserve
- After rising during the COVID-19 pandemic, public trust has fallen to a 20-year low
Charted: Public Trust in the Federal Reserve
Each year, Gallup conducts a survey of American adults on various economic topics, including the country’s central bank, the Federal Reserve.
More specifically, respondents are asked how much confidence they have in the current Fed chairman to do or recommend the right thing for the U.S. economy. We’ve visualized these results from 2001 to 2023 to see how confidence levels have changed over time.
Methodology and Results
The data used in this infographic is also listed in the table below. Percentages reflect the share of respondents that have either a “great deal” or “fair amount” of confidence.
| Year | Fed chair | % Great deal or Fair amount |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Jerome Powell | 36% |
| 2022 | Jerome Powell | 43% |
| 2021 | Jerome Powell | 55% |
| 2020 | Jerome Powell | 58% |
| 2019 | Jerome Powell | 50% |
| 2018 | Jerome Powell | 45% |
| 2017 | Janet Yellen | 45% |
| 2016 | Janet Yellen | 38% |
| 2015 | Janet Yellen | 42% |
| 2014 | Janet Yellen | 37% |
| 2013 | Ben Bernanke | 42% |
| 2012 | Ben Bernanke | 39% |
| 2011 | Ben Bernanke | 41% |
| 2010 | Ben Bernanke | 44% |
| 2009 | Ben Bernanke | 49% |
| 2008 | Ben Bernanke | 47% |
| 2007 | Ben Bernanke | 50% |
| 2006 | Ben Bernanke | 41% |
| 2005 | Alan Greenspan | 56% |
| 2004 | Alan Greenspan | 61% |
| 2003 | Alan Greenspan | 65% |
| 2002 | Alan Greenspan | 69% |
| 2001 | Alan Greenspan | 74% |
Data for 2023 collected April 3-25, with this statement put to respondents: “Please tell me how much confidence you have [in the Fed chair] to recommend the right thing for the economy.”
We can see that trust in the Federal Reserve has fluctuated significantly in recent years.
For example, under Alan Greenspan, trust was initially high due to the relative stability of the economy. The burst of the dotcom bubble—which some attribute to Greenspan’s easy credit policies—resulted in a sharp decline.
On the flip side, public confidence spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was likely due to Jerome Powell’s decisive actions to provide support to the U.S. economy throughout the crisis.
Measures implemented by the Fed include bringing interest rates to near zero, quantitative easing (buying government bonds with newly-printed money), and emergency lending programs to businesses.
Confidence Now on the Decline
After peaking at 58%, those with a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in the Fed chair have tumbled to 36%, the lowest number in 20 years.
This is likely due to Powell’s hard stance on fighting post-pandemic inflation, which has involved raising interest rates at an incredible speed. While these rate hikes may be necessary, they also have many adverse effects:
- Negative impact on the stock market
- Increases the burden for those with variable-rate debts
- Makes mortgages and home buying less affordable
Higher rates have also prompted many U.S. tech companies to shrink their workforces, and have been a factor in the regional banking crisis, including the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.
Where does this data come from?
Source: Gallup (2023)
Data Notes: Results are based on telephone interviews conducted April 3-25, 2023, with a random sample of –1,013—adults, ages 18+, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on this sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. See source for details.
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