Hong Kong [9 July 2025] — The Urban Land Institute (ULI) Asia Pacific today releases its 2025 Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index, revealing persistent challenges to affordable or accessible housing across the region. The fourth edition of the report assesses 51 market segments across 41 major cities.

Home attainability in the context of this report means median home prices which are no more than five times median annual household income and median monthly rents which are no more than 30% on median monthly income.

“Four years of ULI analyses paint a consistent and concerning picture: attaining affordable and adequate housing remains out of reach for far too many across our dynamic region,” said Alan Beebe, CEO, ULI Asia Pacific. “While rental markets offer a crucial lifeline, the fundamental challenge of purchasing a home persists, particularly in major economic hubs. This year’s Index reinforces that solving this requires government policy, innovative financing, embracing new construction technologies, and practical public-private partnerships focused on delivering diverse housing options at scale.”

“Home attainability remains constrained across the region, despite income growth and price dips in some markets,” said Mark Cooper, Senior Director, Thought Leadership, ULI Asia Pacific and lead author of the report. “This year’s report underscores a deepening divide, with rental housing offering significantly more relief than home purchase, and major cities becoming increasingly exclusive. Hong Kong apartments are still the second most unattainable in the region.”

10 Trends: Asia Pacific’s Housing

1/ Home attainability remains constrained across the region: Only seven market segments out of 51 offered home attainability to buyers – homes priced at five times median income or less – in 2024. This is the same number as in 2023. Furthermore, no city in the report scores below four for purchase attainability. Across such a large and diverse region, a crude average of segment attainability scores for 2024 and 2023 is more or less identical (2024: 11.68, 2023:12).

2/ Major cities are the most expensive: Only three market segments in major cities across the region offer homes at or less than five times median income: Singapore HDB apartments and apartments in Melbourne and Kuala Lumpur. Singapore is the only capital city to offer attainable homes for purchase.

3/ Rental housing is more attainable region-wide: rental homes are considerably more attainable than for-sale properties; 41 out of 51 market segments offer rental homes at below 30% of monthly income. The more expensive segments for rental tend to be in first tier cities in both developed and developing nations, although there are exceptions, such as apartments in Tokyo’s 23 Wards, also known as Tokyo Ku, where rents are only 17% of median income.

The drivers of housing attainability remain the same. Factors affecting demand include population growth, population age profile, household formation, urbanisation, immigration, income growth, the cost and availability of financing, and transaction costs. Factors affecting supply include government provision of housing for sale or rent, the availability and cost of land, the construction materials and labour costs, and the cost and availability of financing, planning regulations, and infrastructure development.

4/ Hong Kong scores worst for home attainability: Falling property prices in Hong Kong have made apartments marginally more affordable, they were 23.4 times median annual household income in 2024, compared with 26.5 times in 2022. However, Hong Kong apartments are still the second most unattainable in the region. Meanwhile, average rents are 72% of median monthly income, up from 70% in 2022 and 69% in 2023, as rents have continued to rise.

5/ China price drops have boosted attainability, but provided little comfort for buyers: China has seen prices fall in major cities in recent years, but they remain above 10 times household income in all cities covered in this report and above 20 times in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. Furthermore, the prospect of prices falling further has kept buyers out of the market.

6/ Interest rate cuts have boosted attainability in some markets: Lower interest rates in markets including Australia, Korea and China have made buying a home more attainable. However, the interest rate outlook for the region and the world has become more uncertain in 2025, so the cost of borrowing may remain elevated in many markets. Furthermore, lower interest rates are a double-edged sword, as they also drive higher prices.

7/ Government policy leads the way: While the private sector is responsible for delivering the bulk of housing in most markets, the single biggest driver of market conditions is government legislation and regulation. This means boosting housing attainability requires public-private partnerships.

8/ The Affordability-Accessibility Divide: In developed markets, homes are unattainable because they are too expensive, however in larger developing markets such as India and Indonesia, there remains a shortage of basic housing for millions of people. The Indonesian government estimates that one-third of households do not have access to adequate housing. There, a public housebuilding programme has not been able to keep pace with population growth.

9/ Multifamily Housing’s Untapped Potential: The multifamily residential sector is relatively undeveloped in the Asia Pacific region (except Japan), though growing in China and Australia. This report shows that rental housing is more attainable, thus boosting supply will improve attainability. Furthermore, renting remains very affordable in many markets, with rents less than 25% of monthly income. This suggests potential for the real estate industry to deliver more rental properties and the potential for boosted returns.

There is also increasing demand for related rental residential sectors, such as senior living, co-living, and student accommodation. These could provide additional opportunities for real estate investors and developers, which may contribute to overall housing attainability.

10/ Tech’s Promise: Adoption of modular construction, 3D printing, and other proptech lags in housing development but holds significant potential to reduce costs and construction times in the future.

Generational Impact
There are also particular demographics in Tier I cities with greater challenges, particularly younger people and young families. In a city such as Hong Kong, where both rents and prices are high, it is difficult for younger people to save enough to buy a home. Meanwhile, in many cities, elderly people find housing just as unattainable as their younger fellow citizens. There is clearly potential for further investigation of the housing challenges which face different generations.

Access the Full Report:
The 2025 ULI Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index report, including detailed city rankings and methodology, is available for download at ULI Knowledge Finder.

ENDS

Media Contacts
For further information, please contact:
Priscilla Tong, Director of Communications, ULI Asia Pacific: [email protected]

About the Urban Land Institute
The Urban Land Institute is a non-profit education and research institute supported by its members. Its mission is to shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide. Established in 1936, the Institute has more than 48,000 members worldwide and over 3,000 members in the Asia Pacific region representing all aspects of land use and development disciplines. For more information on ULI Asia Pacific, please visit asia.uli.org, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube.

About the ULI Asia Pacific Centre for Housing
Established in 2022, the ULI Asia Pacific Centre for Housing aims to advance best practices in residential development and support ULI members and local communities in creating and sustaining a full spectrum of housing opportunities. The Centre for Housing publishes the annual Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index.

The Centre for Housing acts as a think tank and provides a forum to explore the latest trends and to address housing issues relevant to the region. Our programme of work is delivered through events, research, education, and advisory services for government policymakers, developers, investors, occupiers, and communities at large.