The world's priciest homes are now in South Korean suburbia
Source: economist.com
- Hong Kong is no longer the world's most unaffordable housing market; that title now belongs to a city in South Korea.
- The price-to-income ratio in this Korean city hit 17.1 in 2024, far exceeding Hong Kong's 16.7.
- This shift highlights Asia's growing housing crisis, where affordability worsens despite economic growth.
The article reveals that the world's most unaffordable housing market is now Seongnam, a suburb of Seoul in South Korea, overtaking Hong Kong. It examines how sky-high home prices relative to incomes plague several Asian cities, driven by rapid urbanisation, low interest rates and speculative buying. This matters because unaffordable housing squeezes young people and migrants, potentially stifling economic dynamism and social mobility across the region.