In this article, we will be analyzing the booming home ownership statistics across the world while covering the 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates. If you wish to skip our detailed analysis, you can move directly to the 5 Countries with the Highest Home Ownership Rates.
An Analysis of Home Ownership Rates Across the Globe
The European Union comprises many countries where the proportion of home owners significantly exceeds the renters. As reported by Eurostat, owning homes was more common than renting in all member states except Germany. Romania, Slovakia, and Croatia recorded the highest share of those who own homes in the EU. These countries have only 5.2%, 7%, and 8.9% tenants respectively which indicates that their housing markets are mostly dominated by owners. Other European nations where home ownership is high include Poland, Hungary, and Lithuania, and we will explore them in detail below.
The overall trend in the EU is also positive regarding home ownership, since 69% of the population lives as home owners. As compared to flats, houses seem to be common in two-thirds of the EU member states. The highest shares of the population living in a house have been recorded at 89% in Ireland, 79% in the Netherlands, and 77% in both Croatia and Belgium. Houses have been the most common in rural areas where 83% of the population resides in them. Flats are more preferred in cities with 72% of the population living in them. In towns and suburbs, 56% of people reside in a house and 43% in a flat.
The world’s second-largest economy, China, also boasts high home ownership. On February 28, Reuters reported that over 550 million Chinese crossed the rural-urban divide to settle in cities between 1998 and 2023. This equates to two-thirds of the total population in Europe. Private home sales and rapid urbanization enabled the nation to have one of the highest home ownership rates. Unfortunately, the country was subjected to a property crisis during 2021 by the default of Evergrande Group, one of the country’s largest developers, ultimately affecting other developers including Country Garden, Kaisa Group, Fantasia Holdings, and Sunac. Previously, we have also covered some of the biggest real estate companies in China.
On May 1, MSN reported that research regarding China’s property market crisis revealed that the Chinese real estate industry was increasingly more concentrated among large developers, which made up the majority of the housing supply between the early 2000s and 2018. 30% of the country’s total housing production came from the top five Chinese real estate developers. With the filing for bankruptcy protection by Evergrande in August 2023 and Country Garden defaulting in October 2023, the property market suffered. The concentrated sector was also a result of how land owned by the government was sold to the highest bidder which was usually large developers with ample financial resources. Large developers with direct or indirect ties to the state could conveniently obtain bank loans from many of the state-owned banks. Back in August 2022, BBC reported that home owners halted mortgage payments as developers defaulted on debts and construction stopped. Since many home owners had paid upfront, they wanted their homes to be delivered to resume payments. Currently, China is planning to have at least 30% of its housing stock made up of state-built housing for low-cost rental or sale under restricted conditions.
Real Estate Companies Across the Globe
Residents of countries with some of the highest rates of home ownership are facilitated by their local real estate developers such as LSR Group (MCX:LSRG), Xinyuan Real Estate Co., Ltd. (NYSE:XIN), and Dom Development SA (WSE:DOM). Let’s take a look at their respective real estate businesses. You can also take a look at the best real estate and realty stocks to buy according to analysts.
LSR Group (MCX:LSRG) serves as a Russian real estate development, construction, and building materials company. The company operates in business regions including St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, Moscow and the Moscow region, and the cities of Ekaterinburg and Sochi. It enables high-quality and modern housing for citizens of metropolises and small towns. The firm also focuses on developing new formats of commercial real estate. Additionally, LSR Group (MCX:LSRG) has a property management business unit that has been involved in operating and managing commercial real estate since 2007.
Xinyuan Real Estate Co., Ltd. (NYSE:XIN) is a top real estate developer and property manager primarily in China. The company facilitates middle-class consumers through the provision of real estate-related products and services. It serves as one of the first Chinese real estate developers to operate in the United States. Xinyuan Real Estate Co., Ltd. (NYSE:XIN) is engaged in the development and management of large-scale and high quality real estate projects in Beijing, Shanghai, Zhengzhou, Jinan, Xi’an, and Suzhou.
Dom Development SA (WSE:DOM) is one of the largest residential developers in Poland’s market. The company carries out the development and sale of residential and commercial real estate properties in the country. The firm claims to have delivered 46,000 apartments and luxury suites by the end of 2022. It assists buyers with securing finance and negotiating the formalities until the final move-in. Dom Development SA (WSE:DOM) has been present in Warsaw since 2008 Tricity while operating in Tricity and Krakow.
Some of the largest real estate companies in the world have also been previously discussed. Without further ado. Let’s move to the 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates.
25 Countries with the Highest Home Ownership Rates
Our Methodology:
In order to compile a list of the 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates, we sourced data from Trading Economics. To expand our research and pool of countries, we sifted through multiple media reports related to our topic, primarily from national news agencies or established media companies. The countries on our list are arranged in ascending order of their most recent home ownership rates.
25 Countries with the Highest Home Ownership Rates
25. Brazil
Home Ownership Rate: 73.49%
Brazil’s home ownership rate was last recorded at 73.49% in 2010. Therefore, the country has a high proportion of home owners and ranks on our list. However, according to a 2020 article by Agência Brasil, a majority of Brazilians live in owned properties. The news report cited a 2019 survey by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) which showed that out of the 62 million dwellings in the country, 48.1 million were owned by residents, which represents 66.4% of all dwellings in the country.
24. Italy
Home Ownership Rate: 74.3%
Italy witnessed a home ownership rate of 74.3% in 2022. The country’s home ownership rate was reported to be at an all-time high of 75.1% in 2020.
23. Slovenia
Home Ownership Rate: 75.4%
In 2022, the home ownership rate in Slovenia was 75.4%. Hence, Slovenia has one of the highest home ownership rates among other countries.
22. Spain
Home Ownership Rate: 76%
Spain is another country where a high proportion of people tend to own their homes. In 2022, the country recorded a home ownership rate of 76%.
21. Czech Republic
Home Ownership Rate: 77.1%
The home ownership rate of the Czech Republic was reported to be 77.1% in 2022. Thus, the country secured the 21st position on our list.
20. Portugal
Home Ownership Rate: 77.8%
Portugal ranks among the 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates. The country had a home ownership rate as high as 77.8% in 2022.
19. Norway
Home Ownership Rate: 79.4%
Home ownership rate in Norway changed from 78.3% in 2021 to 79.4% in 2022. This rate was at an all-time high of 86.1% in 2008.
18. Estonia
Home Ownership Rate: 82%
Estonia is another European country where there is an inclination towards owning homes. In 2022, the country’s home ownership rate was 82%.
17. Malta
Home Ownership Rate: 82.6%
In 2022, the home ownership rate in Malta was reported to be 82.6%. This rate was previously recorded at 81.9% in 2021.
16. Latvia
Home Ownership Rate: 83.1%
The 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates rank Latvia as well. In 2022, 83.1% of Latvians owned their homes. In 2009, the country’s home ownership rate was as high as 87.2%.
15. Bulgaria
Home Ownership Rate: 85.0%
In 2022, Bulgaria recorded a home ownership rate of 85.0%. This rate was recorded at 85% in 2022. The country’s high home ownership rate ranks it 15th on our list.
14. Macedonia
Home Ownership Rate: 85.8%
Home ownership has been high in Macedonia. The national home ownership rate averaged 88.56% from 2011 until 2020. This rate was last recorded at 85.8% in 2020.
13. Poland
Home Ownership Rate: 87.2%
The home ownership rate in Poland was at an all-time high of 87.2% in 2022. The country’s home ownership rate was previously recorded at 86.8% in 2021.
12. Lithuania
Home Ownership Rate: 88.6%
Lithuania’s home ownership rate averaged 90.49% from 2005 until 2022. In 2022, the national home ownership rate was as high as 88.6%.
11. Singapore
Home Ownership Rate: 89.3%
Singapore ranks as one of the 25 countries with the highest home ownership rates. The country’s home ownership rate increased from 88.9% in 2021 to 89.3% in 2022.
10. China
Home Ownership Rate: 89.68%
The Chinese home ownership rate averaged 89.89% from 2013 until 2018. In 2018, 89.68% of the Chinese owned their homes thereby ranking the country 10th on our list.
9. Hungary
Home Ownership Rate: 90.1%
Hungary is another European housing market with substantial home owners. In 2022, 90.1% of the Hungarians owned their homes. Hungary’s home ownership rate was 91.7% in 2021.
8. Montenegro
Home Ownership Rate: 91%
In 2022, Montenegro recorded a home ownership rate of 91% which slightly dropped from 91.5% in 2021. This ranks the country 8th on our list of countries with the highest home ownership rates.
7. Croatia
Home Ownership Rate: 91.1%
The rate of home ownership in Croatia was 91.1% in 2022. This rate averaged 90.06% from 2010 until 2023.
6. Serbia
Home Ownership Rate: 91.6%
Serbia’s home ownership rate was at an all-time high of 91.6% in 2022. The home ownership rate in the country was 89.4% in 2021.
Click to continue reading and see 5 Countries with the Highest Home Ownership Rates.
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Disclosure: None. 25 Countries with the Highest Home Ownership Rates is originally published on Insider Monkey.