Evaluation of house rent prices and their affordability in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

Abstract

Access to affordable housing has been a long-standing issue for households in most cities. This paper reports on a study of house rent prices in Port Moresby, factors influencing them, and affordability of the prices. Data was obtained from houses that were advertised for rent in Port Moresby for a period of 13 months and were analysed using the ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model. The results show that monthly house rent prices range from 2357 to 34,286 Papua New Guinea Kina (PGK), or 714 to 10,389 U.S. dollars (USD), and the median price was 7286 PGK (2208 USD). Houses located in the central business district had the highest median house rent price, whereas low-income areas had the lowest rent price. By dividing the median house rent price by gross household income, the housing affordability index was 3.4. House rent price was influenced by factors such as number of bedrooms and location. To make house rent prices more affordable for Port Moresby residents, it is necessary to supply more houses for rent relative to demand, especially in low-income areas. Relevant governmental agencies should put more effort toward unlocking more customarily-owned land for housing development and toward facilitating the private sector to construct more low-cost houses for rent, which are affordable for low to middle income households. This has the potential of improving Port Moresby residents' access to affordable houses for rent. The findings could assist urban development managers and planners in allocating resources for housing by considering housing demand, supply, and house rent prices.