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.

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.

In the presented European countries, the homeownership rate extended from 42 percent in Switzerland to as much as 96 percent in Albania. Countries with more mature rental markets, such as France, Germany, the UK and Switzerland, tended to have a lower homeownership rate compared to the frontier countries, such as Lithuania or Slovakia. The share of house owners among the population of all 27 European countries has remained relatively stable over the past few years. Average cost of housing Countries with lower homeownership rates tend to have higher house prices. In 2023, the average transaction price for a house was notably higher in Western and Northern Europe than in Eastern and Southern Europe. In Austria - one of the most expensive European countries to buy a new dwelling in - the average price was three times higher than in Greece. Looking at house price growth, however, the most expensive markets recorded slower house price growth compared to the mid-priced markets. Housing supply With population numbers rising across Europe, the need for affordable housing continues. In 2023, European countries completed between one and six housing units per 1,000 citizens, with Ireland, Poland, and Denmark responsible heading the ranking. One of the major challenges for supplying the market with more affordable homes is the rising construction costs. In 2021 and 2022, housing construction costs escalated dramatically due to soaring inflation, which has had a significant effect on new supply.

House prices vary widely in the United Kingdom (UK), but housing in certain cities and counties is substantially pricier than in others. Surrey, for example, concentrated four of the most expensive towns to buy a home, including Virginia Water, Cobham, and Esher. With an average house price of over one million British pounds as of June 2024, housing in these towns cost roughly four times the national average. How did house prices change since the COVID-19 pandemic? Since the start of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, demand for housing has been especially high, causing house prices to soar. Among major UK cities, the house price increase was most prominent in Belfast, where it rose by 5.5 percent in 2024. According to the UK House Price Index, the average annual house price increase on a national level was even higher. How long does it take to sell a house? With the demand for housing going strong and inventory running low, aspiring homeowners need to act faster than ever when making an offer on a home. The average number of days on market has continued shortening since the start of 2021 and was a little over a month as of October 2021. Surprisingly, selling a property took the longest in the UK’s most competitive market - London.

In the third quarter of 2024, London (West End) was the market with the most expensive prime office space worldwide.The net effective cost for a prime office in London cost close to 287 U.S. dollars annually. In second and third market in the ranking, Hong Kong and Midtown New York, prices also exceeded 200 U.S. dollars per square foot. The global office real estate sector was severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic and the political and economic uncertainty that followed. With many companies placing expansion plans on hold and transitioning to hybrid working models, vacancies across many markets spiked and leasing activity slowed down.

The price of residential property in New Zealand was the highest in the Auckland region in December 2024, with an average sale price of around one million New Zealand dollars. The most populated city in the country, Auckland, has consistently reported higher house prices compared to most other regions. Buying property in New Zealand, particularly in its major cities, is expensive. The nation has one of the highest house-price-to-income ratios in the world. Auckland residential market The residential housing market in Auckland is competitive. Prices have been slowly decreasing; the Auckland region experienced an annual decrease in the average residential house price in December 2024 compared to the same month in the previous year. The price of residential property in Auckland was the highest in the North Shore City district, with an average sale price of around 1.21 million New Zealand dollars. Home financing Due to the rising cost of real estate, an increasing number of New Zealanders who want to own their own property are taking on mortgages. Most residential mortgage lending in New Zealand went to owner-occupier borrowers, followed by first home buyers. In addition to mortgage lending, previously under the KiwiSaver HomeStart initiative, first-home buyers in New Zealand were able to apply to withdraw all or part of their KiwiSaver retirement savings to assist with purchasing a first home. Nonetheless, the scheme was discontinued in May 2024. Furthermore, even with a large initial deposit, it may take decades for many borrowers to pay off their mortgage.

In 2023, the home ownership rate among residents in Singapore was at 89.7 percent, an increase from the previous year. Singapore has high rates of home ownership, despite being among the world’s most expensive property markets. Singapore’s public housing policy hinges on high rates of home ownership Home ownership is seen as key to nation-building in Singapore, and thus makes up the core of its public housing policy. The Home Ownership Scheme, introduced in 1964, provides grants and subsidies to Singaporean citizens planning to purchase a housing unit under the management of the Housing Development Board (HDB). As a result, 80 percent of the residents in Singapore live in public housing. Priced out of the private market? While new HDB units are only available for Singaporean citizens, the resale and private housing market are open to non-citizens as well. Private residential property in Singapore is seen as an attractive and safe investment for many foreign buyers. Luxury private apartments, costing millions of dollars, are unattainable for many residents

Some of the 21 districts of Spain’s capital city are well far off the 2,800 euros per square meter that Spaniards had to pay on average to purchase a home in 2023. The Spanish capital is home to some of the wealthiest districts of Spain, such as the historic Salamanca district, which topped the list at almost 7,000 euros per square meter. Rents in SpainWhilst Madrid’s districts had the highest prices for residential real estate, the Spanish capital was not the most expensive place to rent. Ibiza topped the list of the least affordable properties to rent, with households hypothetically requiring over 162 percent of their full income to pay off the rent. Located in the Andalusian province of Malaga, Marbella ranked second on the list, with over 156 percent of the full household income. Spain: the rebirth of a property marketAfter a long period of time in which Spain’s real estate prices increased sharply, the market was hit by the global financial crisis of 2007, making the Spanish property bubble collapse and damaging home value. It can be seen that real estate prices in Spain initiated a solid recovery in 2015, reaching 131.9 house price index points in 2021 from a lowest point of 96.27 index points recorded in 2013. The property market has made great progress, but it is still far off the rest of its European counterparts, and it is positioned, in fact, at the bottom of the European list of the EMF’s house price index, which is led by Czechia.

The average house price in London increased slightly year-on-year as of June 2024, amid a slowdown in the UK housing market. Barking and Dagenham was the most affordable borough to buy a house, with an average price of 340,403 British pounds. Kensington and Chelsea stood at the other end of the spectrum, with an average price of 1.2 million British pounds. Nevertheless, it was also one of the boroughs where prices fell the most. Demand for housing and house prices With vastly more job and cultural opportunities, megacities continue attracting people from all over the world. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the population of London has increased by more than 2 million inhabitants and in the next 20 years, it is forecast to increase by almost 1.5 million. That makes London properties a valuable asset. Historically, property prices in London have risen steadily, albeit minor fluctuations. Residential properties transactions Since 2006, the number of residential property sales has varied between 1.7 million and 0.8 million transactions annually. The housing boom in 2021 led to an increase in home purchases, but the economic uncertainty, stubborn inflation, and dramatically higher interest rates have led to transactions falling.

In the first quarter of 2024, Amsterdam was the most expensive city to rent a furnished one-bedroom apartment among the 23 leading European cities surveyed. At 2,300 euros per month, rent in Amsterdam was more than twice as high as in Brussels. Amsterdam was also the most expensive city to rent a private room.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.

The average resale house price in Canada was forecast to reach nearly 836,000 Canadian dollars in 2026, according to a January forecast. In 2024, house prices increased after falling for the first time since 2019. One of the reasons for the price correction was the notable drop in transaction activity. Housing transactions picked up in 2024 and are expected to continue to grow until 2026. British Columbia, which is the most expensive province for housing, is projected to see the average house price reach 1.2 million Canadian dollars in 2026. Affordability in Vancouver Vancouver is the most populous city in British Columbia and is also infamously expensive for housing. In 2023, the city topped the ranking for least affordable housing market in Canada, with the average homeownership cost outweighing the average household income. There are a multitude of reasons for this, but most residents believe that foreigners investing in the market cause the high housing prices. Victoria housing market The capital of British Columbia is Victoria, where housing prices are also very high. The price of a single family home in Victoria's most expensive suburb, Oak Bay was 1.9 million Canadian dollars in 2024.

Turkey, Russia, Portugal, and Latvia were the countries with the highest house price-to-rent-ratio in the ranking in the second quarter of 2024. In all three countries, the ratio exceeded 160 index points, meaning that house price growth had outpaced rents by over 60 percent between 2015 and 2024. What does the house-price-to-rent ratio show? The house-price-to-rent-ratio measures the evolution of house prices compared to rents. It is generally calculated by dividing the median house price by the median annual rent. In this statistic, the values have been normalized with 100 equaling the 2015 ratio. Consequentially, a value under 100 means that rental rates have risen more than house prices. When all OECD countries are considered as a whole, the gap between house prices and rents was wider than in the Euro area. Measures of housing affordability The national house-price-to-rent ratio may not fully reflect the cost of housing in a particular country, as it does not capture the price variations that can exist between different regions. It also does not take into consideration the relationship between incomes and housing costs, which is measured by the house-price-to-income and household-rent-to-income ratios. Taking both these factors into account uncovers vast differences in housing affordability between different regions and different professions.

Cities in the United States dominate the list of the cities with the highest rents worldwide. New York was ranked as the most expensive city to rent in ahead of Singapore with an index score of 100. Hamilton in Canada followed in third.

Germany, Belgium, and Ireland had some of the highest household electricity prices worldwide, as of June 2024. At the time, German households were charged around 0.39 U.S. dollars per kilowatt-hour, while in Belgium, the price stood at 0.37 U.S. dollars per kilowatt-hour. By comparison, in Qatar, residents paid more than 10 times less. What is behind electricity prices? Electricity prices vary widely across the world and sometimes even within a country itself, depending on factors like infrastructure, geography, and politically determined taxes and levies. For example, in Denmark, Belgium, and Sweden, taxes constitute a significant portion of residential end-user electricity prices. Reliance on fossil fuel imports Meanwhile, thanks to their great crude oil and natural gas production output, countries like Iran, Qatar, and Russia enjoy some of the cheapest electricity prices in the world. Here, the average household pays less than 0.1 U.S. dollars per kilowatt-hour. In contrast, countries heavily reliant on fossil fuel imports for electricity generation are more vulnerable to market price fluctuations. The top importers of natural gas in Europe in 2023 were Germany and Italy, where this energy source constitutes a relevant share of the power mix.

London West End - Bond Street is the most expensive location for prime high street rents in the UK, with prices reaching 2,250 British pounds per square foot. The West End was ranked ahead of the London City, which came in third. In Manchester, the annual costs of rental per square foot of prime retail real estate amounted to 225 British pounds. Retail warehouses Retail warehouses typically range from fifty thousand to hundreds of thousands of square feet. They are used for keeping and distributing inventory. Retail warehouses include loading docks, truck doors and large parking lots; also, they may contain a limited amount of office space. Prime retail warehouse properties belong to the wider category of industrial property, along with other real estate types, such as distribution buildings, showroom facilities, manufacturing buildings, cold storage facilities, telecom or data hosting centers, "flex" buildings denoting more than one industrial or commercial facility housed in the same building, and finally R&D buildings. Prime yields of high street retail across Europe Retail real estate prime yields in Europe were the lowest in Zurich, Switzerland, and the highest in Istanbul, Turkey in 2022. As could be expected, larger cities in Europe tended to produce lower yields, due to the lower risk associated with these markets. Locations with lower yields tend to have steady occupancy rates and rental growth.

The United Kingdom (UK) is the most expensive European country for annual costs of prime industrial rent at about 300 euros per square meter of industrial space in London Heathrow per year in 2023. Switzerland, Norway, Ireland, Finland, and Luxembourg were the other European countries where the average annual cost of industrial prime rents in the capital city exceeded one hundred euros per square meter.

European countries have some of the highest natural gas prices for households worldwide. Natural gas prices for households vary greatly around the world, depending on governmental levies, taxes, as well as local production. In Sweden, prices averaged 0.24 U.S. dollars per kilowatt-hour in December 2023, whilst prices in Canada, a producer of natural gas, were just 0.04 U.S. dollars per kilowatt-hour.

As of September 2024, Mumbai had the highest cost of living among other cities in the country, with an index value of 26.5. Gurgaon, a satellite city of Delhi and part of the National Capital Region (NCR) followed it with an index value of 25.1.  What is cost of living? The cost of living varies depending on geographical regions and factors that affect the cost of living in an area include housing, food, utilities, clothing, childcare, and fuel among others. The cost of living is calculated based on different measures such as the consumer price index (CPI), living cost indexes, and wage price index. CPI refers to the change in the value of consumer goods and services. The wage price index, on the other hand, measures the change in labor services prices due to market pressures. Lastly, the living cost indexes calculate the impact of changing costs on different households. The relationship between wages and costs determines affordability and shifts in the cost of living. Mumbai tops the list Mumbai usually tops the list of most expensive cities in India. As the financial and entertainment hub of the country, Mumbai offers wide opportunities and attracts talent from all over the country. It is the second-largest city in India and has one of the most expensive real estates in the world.

In 2023, a square meter of retail space in Venice cost on average 4,301 euros, making it the most expensive city in Italy for retailers. The ranking presented in the graph shows that Milan, the Italian fashion capital, came second, with an average price per square meter of 4,069 euros. When looking at office space, Venice boasted again the highest prices in Italy. In this real estate segment, second in the ranking was Rome, followed by Milan. Residential real estate in Venice Venice is not only the most expensive city in Italy for office and retail spaces, but it also boasts some of the highest prices for residential properties. Residential dwellings on the island can fetch up to 6,000 euros per square meter, with the most expensive areas being the districts San Marco and Rialto. Renting is not very affordable either: a flat in the two districts can cost up to 19 euros per square meter per month, depending on the neighborhood. Why is Venice so expensive? Space in Venice is limited, and the city island became the victim of its own success. Before the coronavirus pandemic struck, the number of overnight stays in Venice had grown twofold since 2003. The unavailability of space for new constructions and the increasing pressure exerted by tourism pushed prices up in all real estate sectors. Due to many tourists visiting from all over the world, it should not come as a surprise that retailers and investors want to seize the chance to own a space in one of the most famous cities in the world.