Hong Kong has most unaffordable housing in the world: report

One flat equals 17 years of salary.

Where in the world is the most unaffordable place for housing? In Hong Kong, apparently.

According to a research note from Barclays, Demographia, an American consulting firm, finds that Hong Kong ranks No.1 for the most unaffordable housing among 378 cities it tracks worldwide.

It said that purchasing a flat in Hong Kong would cost 17 years of salary.

Here's more from Barclays:

According to the report, the annual household income for a Hong Kong family went up 6% y/y in 2014 to HK$287,000.

In contrast, the home price median went up 22% y/y to HK$4,892,000. The home price-to-income multiple increased from 14.9x in 2013 to 17.0x in 2014.

The report listed Vancouver as having the second most unaffordable housing with a home price-to-income ratio of 10.6x, and Sydney in third place with a ratio of 9.8x.