Portugal, Canada, and the United States were the countries with the highest house price to income ratio in 2024. In all three countries, the index exceeded 130 index points, while the average for all OECD countries stood at 116.2 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.

The standardised house price-to-income ratio is defined as the ratio of the current price to income ratio relative to the long-term average price-to-income ratio, calculated over the period 2000 to the most recent data available. If the ratio equals 100, it means the current price-to-income ratio is equal to its long term average. House prices are provided by Eurostat, and income is calculated as adjusted household gross disposable income (B7G) per head of population based on Eurostat data.

Affordability ratios calculated by dividing house prices by gross annual residence-based earnings. Based on the median and lower quartiles of both house prices and earnings in England and Wales.

Hungary increased 9% of House Price to Income Ratio in 2019, from a year earlier.

The house price to income ratio in Canada peaked in the second quarter of 2022, followed by a decline until the second quarter of 2025. The ratio 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. Canada's index score in the second quarter of 2025 amounted to *****, which means that house price growth has outpaced income growth by almost **** percent since 2015. Canadian home prices continue to grow House prices in Canada have steadily increased over the past decade, despite a very mild decline in 2023. This trend is forecast to continue until 2026, albeit at a lower rate than in the period between 2019 and 2022. In British Columbia, which has consistently been the most expensive province for housing, the average house price is expected to reach nearly *** million Canadian dollars in 2026. The rising homeownership costs have also affected rents. In 2024, the average two-bedroom apartment rent in Vancouver exceeded ***** Canadian dollars. Canadian incomes on the rise Incomes in Canada have steadily risen since 2000 and show no signs of slowing down in the near future. This should improve housing affordability, as long as home price growth slows down.

The house price-to-income ratio in the United States has reached concerning levels, with the index hitting ***** in the second quarter of 2025. This indicates that house prices have outpaced income growth by *****percent since 2015, highlighting a growing affordability crisis in the housing market. The widening gap between home prices and wages is putting homeownership out of reach for many Americans, particularly as real wages have remained stagnant. Rising home prices and stagnant wages While average annual real wages in the United States have increased slightly since 2014, home prices have soared. The median sales price of existing single-family homes reached a record-high in 2024, representing a substantial increase over the past five years. This disparity between wage growth and home price appreciation has led to a significant decrease in housing affordability across the country. Affordability challenges in the U.S. housing market The U.S. Housing Affordability Index, which measures whether a family earning the median income can afford a median-priced home, plummeted in 2024, marking the second-worst year for homebuyers since records began. This decline in affordability is reflected in homebuyer sentiment, with homebuyer sentiment plummeting.

Portugal, the Netherlands and Austria are among the countries where house prices grew the most in comparison to income since 2015. In the fourth quarter of 2024, the house price to income ratio in the Netherlands and Austria exceeded *** index points, indicating that since 2015, house price growth has outpaced income growth by ** percent. In Portugal, the index amounted to *** index points in the same period. This was not the case in all countries in the ranking: In Finland, Bulgaria, and Romania, the opposite trend was observed, showing that incomes grew faster than house prices. The house price to income ratio is calculated as the nominal house prices divided by nominal income per capita, with 2015 chosen as the base year of the index. The ratio signifies the development of housing affordability, with higher figures meaning housing is more unaffordable. There are other indices, such as RHPI (or house price indices corrected by inflation rates) which look at this as well.

Affordability ratios calculated by dividing house prices by gross annual workplace-based earnings. Based on the median and lower quartiles of both house prices and earnings in England and Wales.

Switzerland Price to Income Ratio: sa data was reported at 125.810 2015=100 in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 124.006 2015=100 for 2023. Switzerland Price to Income Ratio: sa data is updated yearly, averaging 110.203 2015=100 from Dec 1970 (Median) to 2024, with 55 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 142.115 2015=100 in 1989 and a record low of 72.862 2015=100 in 2001. Switzerland Price to Income Ratio: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Switzerland – Table CH.OECD.AHPI: House Price Index: Seasonally Adjusted: OECD Member: Annual. Nominal house prices divided by nominal disposable income per head. Net household disposable income is used. The population data come from the OECD national accounts database.

Taiwan Housing Price to Income Ratio data was reported at 9.160 Times in Dec 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 9.220 Times for Sep 2017. Taiwan Housing Price to Income Ratio data is updated quarterly, averaging 6.735 Times from Mar 2002 (Median) to Dec 2017, with 64 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 9.460 Times in Jun 2017 and a record low of 4.150 Times in Sep 2002. Taiwan Housing Price to Income Ratio data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Taiwan – Table TW.EB017: Housing Price and Housing Loan Payment to Income Ratio.

The house price to income ratio in Japan amounted to ****** points in the first quarter of 2025. This is higher than the observation from the first quarter one year earlier, when the ratio had been ****** points.

Global House Standardised Price-Income Ratio by Country, 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

Housing affordability (median house prices to earnings ratio)

Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data was reported at 149.268 Ratio in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 152.371 Ratio for Sep 2024. Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data is updated quarterly, averaging 82.643 Ratio from Mar 1970 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 220 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 153.422 Ratio in Jun 2024 and a record low of 62.554 Ratio in Sep 1983. Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Australia – Table AU.OECD.AHPI: House Price Index: Seasonally Adjusted: OECD Member: Quarterly. Nominal house prices divided by nominal disposable income per head. Net household disposable income is used. The population data come from the OECD national accounts database. The long-term average is calculated over the whole period available when the indicator begins after 1980 or after 1980 if the indicator is longer. This value is used as a reference value. The ratio is calculated by dividing the indicator source on this long-term average, and indexed to a reference value equal to 100.

Japan JP: Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data was reported at 87.580 Ratio in 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 89.402 Ratio for 2023. Japan JP: Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data is updated yearly, averaging 128.381 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2024, with 65 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 163.402 Ratio in 1973 and a record low of 73.561 Ratio in 2009. Japan JP: Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Japan – Table JP.OECD.AHPI: House Price Index: Seasonally Adjusted: OECD Member: Annual. Nominal house prices divided by nominal disposable income per head. Net household disposable income is used. The population data come from the OECD national accounts database. The long-term average is calculated over the whole period available when the indicator begins after 1980 or after 1980 if the indicator is longer. This value is used as a reference value. The ratio is calculated by dividing the indicator source on this long-term average, and indexed to a reference value equal to 100.

Explore how UK house prices compare to average wages. Interactive charts show the long-term price-to-income ratio using official ONS earnings and UK HPI data — a key measure of housing affordability.

Context

This dataset is created via OECD datasource which is consisted of 2000 between 2020. https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm

Content

The housing prices indicator shows indices of residential property prices over time. Included are rent prices, real and nominal house prices, and ratios of price to rent and price to income; the main elements of housing costs. In most cases, the nominal house price covers the sale of newly-built and existing dwellings, following the recommendations from RPPI (Residential Property Prices Indices) manual. The real house price is given by the ratio of nominal price to the consumers’ expenditure deflator in each country, both seasonally adjusted, from the OECD national accounts database. The price to income ratio is the nominal house price divided by the nominal disposable income per head and can be considered as a measure of affordability. The price to rent ratio is the nominal house price divided by the rent price and can be considered as a measure of the profitability of house ownership. This indicator is an index with base year 2015.

Housing affordability (house prices to earnings ratio) *This indicator has been discontinued

The house price to income ratio in Germany stood at ***** points in the second quarter of 2025. This is higher than the observation from the second quarter one year earlier, when the ratio had been ***** points.

This dataset contains the ratio of lower quartile/median house price to lower quartile/median earnings in England