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| Document Type: | General |
| Publish Date: | August 2020 |
| Primary Author: | Asian Development Bank |
| Prepared By: | Saba |
| Edited By: | Arsalan Hasan |
| Published By: | Asian Development Bank |
Affordable Housing in Bhutan
Bhutan, poverty headcount ratio at $1.90 a day (2011 purchasing power parity) was 1.5% in 2017.
Though the deficit of quantitative housing in Bhutan is negligible, the majority of the households are currently unable to find affordable housing in Bhutan such as owned/rental units.
It is estimated that current rents are more than 30% of the household income, which is a globally accepted standard. With demographic shifts, there is a huge demand for affordable housing in urban areas of Bhutan.
However, the sector is facing challenges like availability of land, high cost of imported building materials, skilled labor, and alternative financing mechanisms especially for the poor who lack credit history, among others, which further pushes the overall housing cost beyond affordable limits.
Performance audits undertaken for housing development in 2018 for various agencies including NHDCL suggest that so far, NHDCL has created only 2,073 housing units against the 28,973 civil servants.
Though some civil servants receive a house rent allowance, it is inadequate to cover rent. A recent study in Thimphu reveals that rent comprises 42% of household income.
The proposed project will add affordable housing stock of 1,000 units.
Also read: INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN BHUTAN