Most cities and towns in developing countries are experiencing a massive influx of population from rural areas. The majority of the rural population migrates to urban areas hoping to find a job and a higher income for their survival. This large influx creates a high demand for urban housing and infrastructure, which the majority of the migrants cannot afford. Moreover, the insufficient use of low-cost traditional building materials and construction techniques in residential construction has resulted in expensive housing stock for the majority of the poor. A critical literature review method was adopted in this article to investigate the economic benefit of contemporary earth construction in low-cost urban housing compared to conventional brick and concrete construction.