The data used in this map is from the Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey. Mapped is middle-income affordability measured by using a ‘price to income’ ratio, which yields median multiple values. A median multiple is simply a value gathered from dividing median house price by median household income. The median multiple values give us the categories of Affordable (3.0 and below), Moderately affordable (3.1-4.1), seriously unaffordable (4.1-5.0), and severely unaffordable (5.1 and above). These values can be trusted because they are derived from factual and appropriate data for this application. This data is a better indicator of housing affordability than simply representing housing cost alone because it includes the mean income of the area. Including mean income provides a frame of reference to display the housing prices within. Without it, the viewer would simply see housing costs and have no way of knowing whether those prices are expensive for the area. Even if the average cost of a home was over one million dollars, if the mean income is $1.2 million, then said home would actually be affordable.
All of this is useful, but is housing affordability a good indicator of a city’s livability? The answer to this question varies greatly on the individual. There are many factors considered when evaluating a city’s livability including housing affordability. If one’s income only allows them to own, rent, or lease a home and survive (leaving no expendable income), then they may consider an expensive city to be unlivable. However, Vancouver is a very expensive and quite frankly, unaffordable city to live in for most as seen on the map. Yet, it is considered one of the most liveable cities in the world. People make things work with what they have and simply enjoy, the scenery and culture of Vancouver. In conclusion, a city’s housing affordability only plays a small role in determining overall livability. Depending on the city, just having the ability to live there is enough.