House prices up by 6.44% during 2020

House prices rose by 6.44% in 2020 in Taiwan, an improvement from the previous year’s modest growth of 2.06% and the best performance since 2013. Quarter-on-quarter, house prices increased 1.14% in Q4 2020.

The housing market slowed in recent years, after dramatic government measures to curb speculative house purchases.

Demand is rising again; supply continues to rise

In September 2020, housing transactions in Taiwan’s six major cities rose by 12.3% from a month earlier and by 36.1% from the same period last year, to 24,000 units – a sign that the market is bouncing back quickly. For the first nine months of 2020, housing transactions were up 5.4% y-o-y to 177,600 units, following a 9.4% growth in 2019.

The total number of residential construction licenses issued rose by 7.7% y-o-y to 129,365 units in the first ten months of 2020, following strong growth of 22.1% in 2019 and 32.3% in 2018, according to the Ministry of Interior.

Rents, rental yields: amazingly low yields in Tapei at 1.57%

Taipei apartment costs are at $7,112 per sq. m. 

Taiwan: typical city centre apartment buying price, monthly rent (120 sq. m)
	Buying price	Rate per month	Yield
Taipei	$853,440	$1,117	1.57%

Recent news. The economic repercussions of the COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan have been milder than in neighbouring countries, with the economy growing by 2.98% in 2020, thanks to strong electronics and tech exports. Recently, the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) upgraded its economic forecast this year to 4.64%, from its initial projection of a 3.83% growth – its fastest growth in seven years.