Hong Kong retained its title as the world's least affordable housing market for a 16th straight year, and a household would need to spend 14.1 years of income, without other expenses, to buy a median-priced home, according to the annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey.
However, the median price-to-income ratio dropped from 23.2 in 2021 as the city’s home prices have fallen by over 20 percent from their peak.
The survey examined the median house price and median household income in 96 major markets across eight countries during the third quarter last year.
Sydney ranked second with a ratio of 14, followed by San Jose, California, at 11.3, and Adelaide, also in Australia, at 11.2.
New York ranked 16th with a median multiple of 7.5, and London and Seattle, at 6.9, shared the 22nd spot.
A ratio of 3 or below is considered affordable, above 5 is severely unaffordable, and above 9 is impossibly unaffordable.
Demographia said Hong Kong has consistently topped the list for over the past decade and a half, with one of the smallest average home sizes globally.
Data from the Rating and Valuation Department showed that as of the end of September 2025, Hong Kong's private residential property prices slumped 26 percent from the peak recorded in September 2021.
Home prices, however, have risen nearly 8 percent through April this year from September, further trimming the decrease to just 20.5 percent from the all-time high.
If sustained, Hong Kong could once again top the board next year.
Economists argued that the survey’s calculation cannot fully reveal Hong Kong’s affordability, as one-third of Hong Kong's population lives in public rental housing flats.
