Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia, ranked as the most expensive city to live in Africa as of 2024, considering consumer goods prices. The Ethiopian capital obtained an index score of 46.7, followed by Harare, in Zimbabwe, with 37.4. Morocco and South Africa were the countries with the most representatives among the 15 cities with the highest cost of living in Africa.

Geneva, Switzerland, was the most expensive city to buy an apartment in Europe in the first quarter of 2024. The square meter price in Geneva was nearly 15,650 euros in that quarter, about 2,000 euros higher than the second city in the ranking, Zurich. Cost of rent Rents across the major cities in Europe increased significantly in 2023. One of the main factors driving high rents across European cities is the same as any other consumer-driven business. If demand outweighs supply, prices will inflate. The drive for high paid professionals to be located centrally in prime locations, mixed with the low levels of available space, high land, and construction costs, all help keep rental prices increasing. Mortgage rates The average mortgage interest rates across Europe in 2023 were all under five percent, except in Czechia, Romania, Hungary, and Poland. On an individual level, a difference of one percent would most likely mean thousands of euros in interest on the mortgage a person is paying, making timing key in house purchasing. Mortgage interest rates tend to be lower in Nordic countries due to the financial stability and reliability of its borrowers. Other factors that influence the mortgage interest rates include inflation, economic growth, monetary policies, the bond market and the overall conditions of the housing market. More stable markets also tend to have higher average prices.

Portugal, Canada, and the United States were the countries with the highest house price to income ratio in 2023. In all three countries, the index exceeded 130 index points, while the average for all OECD countries stood at 117.5 index points. The index measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing nominal house price by nominal disposable income per head, with 2015 set as a base year when the index amounted to 100. An index value of 120, for example, would mean that house price growth has outpaced income growth by 20 percent since 2015. How have house prices worldwide changed since the COVID-19 pandemic? House prices started to rise gradually after the global financial crisis (2007–2008), but this trend accelerated with the pandemic. The countries with advanced economies, which usually have mature housing markets, experienced stronger growth than countries with emerging economies. Real house price growth (accounting for inflation) peaked in 2022 and has since lost some of the gain. Although, many countries experienced a decline in house prices, the global house price index shows that property prices in 2023 were still substantially higher than before COVID-19. Renting vs. buying In the past, house prices have grown faster than rents. However, the home affordability has been declining notably, with a direct impact on rental prices. As people struggle to buy a property of their own, they often turn to rental accommodation. This has resulted in a growing demand for rental apartments and soaring rental prices.

A dataset listing the 20 richest counties in Maryland for 2024, including information on rank, county, population, average income, and median income.

The average sales price of new homes in the United States experienced a slight decrease in 2024, dropping to 512,2000 U.S. dollars from the peak of 521,500 U.S. dollars in 2022. This decline came after years of substantial price increases, with the average price surpassing 400,000 U.S. dollars for the first time in 2021. The recent cooling in the housing market reflects broader economic trends and changing consumer sentiment towards homeownership. Factors influencing home prices and affordability The rapid rise in home prices over the past few years has been driven by several factors, including historically low mortgage rates and increased demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the market has since slowed down, with the number of home sales declining by over two million between 2021 and 2023. This decline can be attributed to rising mortgage rates and decreased affordability. The Housing Affordability Index hit a record low of 98.1 in 2023, indicating that the median-income family could no longer afford a median-priced home. Future outlook for the housing market Despite the recent cooling, experts forecast a potential recovery in the coming years. The Freddie Mac House Price Index showed a growth of 6.5 percent in 2023, which is still above the long-term average of 4.4 percent since 1990. However, homebuyer sentiment remains low across all age groups, with people aged 45 to 64 expressing the most pessimistic outlook. The median sales price of existing homes is expected to increase slightly until 2025, suggesting that affordability challenges may persist in the near future.

The average monthly price for natural gas in the United States amounted to 3.02 nominal U.S. dollars per million British thermal units (Btu) in December 2024. By contrast, natural gas prices in Europe were about four times higher than those in the U.S. Prices for Europe tend to be notably higher than those in the U.S. as the latter benefits from being a major hydrocarbon producer. Europe's import reliance European prices for natural gas rose most notable throughout the second half of 2021 and much of 2022, peaking at over 70 U.S. dollars per million Btu in August 2022. The sharp rise was due to supply chain issues and economic strain following the COVID-19 pandemic, which was further exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. As a result of the war, many countries began looking for alternative sources, and Russian pipeline gas imports to the European Union declined as a result. Meanwhile, LNG was a great beneficiary, with LNG demand in Europe rising by more than 60 percent between 2021 and 2023. How domestic natural gas production shapes prices As intimated, the United States’ position among the leaders of worldwide natural gas production is one of the main reasons for why prices for this commodity are so low across the country. In 2023, the U.S. produced more than one trillion cubic meters of natural gas, which allays domestic demand and allows for far lower purchasing prices.

In 2023, the price of natural gas in Europe reached 13.1 constant U.S. dollars per million British thermal units, compared with 2.5 U.S. dollars in the U.S. This was a notable decrease compared to the previous year, which had seen a steep increase in prices due to an energy supply shortage exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war. Since 1980, natural gas prices have typically been higher in Europe than in the United States and are expected to remain so for the coming two years. This is due to the U.S. being a significantly larger natural gas producer than Europe.

What is natural gas and why is it gaining ground in the energy market? Natural gas is commonly burned in power plants with combustion turbines that generate electricity or used as a heating fuel. Given the fact that the world’s energy demand continues to grow, natural gas was seen by some industry leaders as an acceptable "bridge-fuel" to overcome the use of more emission-intensive energy sources such as coal. Subsequently, natural gas has become the main fuel for electricity generation in the U.S., while the global gas power generation share has reached 22 percent.

How domestic production shapes U.S. natural gas prices The combination of hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) and horizontal drilling can be regarded as one of the oil and gas industry’s biggest breakthroughs in decades, with the U.S. being the largest beneficiary. This technology has helped the industry release unprecedented quantities of gas from deposits, mainly shale and tar sands that were previously thought either inaccessible or uneconomic. It is forecast that U.S. shale gas production could reach 35 trillion cubic feet in 2050, up from 1.77 trillion cubic feet in 2000.