Author(s)

Yang Wang ¹, Yunyun Li ¹, Xiaoli Yue ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ Faculty of Geography, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming, 650500, China

Corresponding Author

Yunyun Li

ABSTRACT

To reveal the characteristics and patterns of housing vacancy rate (HVR) disparities across major cities worldwide, this study integrated multi-source data (academic literature, statistical data, research reports, etc.) to collect and analyze HVR data from 324 sample cities across 45 countries. The results indicate that: (1) The median HVR for global cities is 8.04%, showing a pattern of "lower in the North, higher in the South," with developed countries generally having lower rates than developing countries. (2) Low HVR cities (<5%) account for 36.73% of the sample, predominantly concentrated in Europe and Oceania; cities with extremely high HVR (≥20%) are concentrated in countries like Mexico, India, and Greece. (3) Significant intercontinental differences exist, with the median and mean HVRs in Asia and Africa exceeding 10%, far higher than those in Oceania, Europe, and North America. (4) Among 41 selected globally renowned cities, HVRs vary significantly, with 13 cities exceeding the 10% international alert threshold. This study provides foundational data and support for analyzing global urban housing vacancy.

KEYWORDS

Housing Vacancy Rate, Housing Vacancy, Global Major Cities, Worldwide

CITE THIS PAPER

Yang Wang, Yunyun Li, Xiaoli Yue, Differences in Housing Vacancy Rates across Major Cities Worldwide*. Journal of Civil Engineering and Urban Planning (2025) Vol. 7: 21-26. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/jceup.2025.070304.

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