Demand for Worldwide Housing to Exceed 60 Million New Units by 2016
Demand for housing is projected to spur the construction of 60.5 million new housing units in 2016, an increase of 3.5% per annum, according to a new report from the Freedonia Group Inc.
Ongoing rural-to-urban migration and increases in the number of households in developing countries will spur construction of new housing units through 2016. Such urbanization and household formation will generate particularly strong demand for housing in the Asia-Pacific and Africa/Mideast regions. The Asia-Pacific region will account for 62% of the world’s new housing units in 2016, with the Africa/Mideast region comprising an additional 20% of the world total.