A fundamental part of the human experience, the desire to possess a home represents stability, security, and success. The affordability of real estate has, however, recently raised serious issues in many parts of the world. Potential renters and homeowners find themselves fighting an uphill struggle to obtain housing that is compatible with their financial capacities as housing markets vary and economic fundamentals change.
The affordability of housing is heavily influenced by region. While some nations have low-cost housing, others can be very pricey.
Numbeo, a platform that delivers up-to-date information about the cost of living, quality of life, and numerous socioeconomic characteristics in cities and countries throughout the world, includes a property prices index on its platform, that displays, quantitatively, how areas differ in property values. These indicators are historical and are updated on a regular basis, particularly on a yearly and mid-year basis.
The index includes anything from price-to-income ratio to gross rental yield, to the affordability index. The list is going to cover the price-to-price-to-income ratio of the top 5 African countries on Numbeo’s database, showing just how conveniently or in this case inconveniently residents of each country can afford a home.
A key indicator of apartment affordability is the price-to-price-to-income ratio, where a lower ratio denotes better affordability. Typically, it is determined as the ratio of median apartment costs to median family disposable income, represented as years of income (although there are other places where different methods are employed).
The formula used to compute this comprises; net disposable family income, defined as 1.5 times the average net pay (assuming 50% female labor force participation).
The median apartment size is 90 square meters, and the price per square meter (as calculated by the formula) is the average price per square meter in the city center and outside of the city center.
Below are 5 African countries with the least affordable housing
| Rank | Country | Price to Income Ratio | Affordability Index | Global Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Cameroon | 41.7 | 0.1 | 3rd |
| 2. | Ethiopia | 28.9 | 0.2 | 9th |
| 3. | Algeria | 16.0 | 0.7 | 26th |
| 4. | Morocco | 14.5 | 0.9 | 35th |
| 5. | Kenya | 13.6 | 0.5 | 43rd |
