The proportion of single-person households in Taiwan rose to 40.5%, becoming the dominant family structure

"TAIPEI TIMES" Single households increased to 40.5% nationwide

Taipei City buildings, undated photo. Photo: Taipei Times

Not accurate? One real estate agent said the number of single households may be overestimated due to the new preferential tax system for owner-occupied homes.

By Xu Yiping/Staff Reporter

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According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, the number of single-person households nationwide reached approximately 3,993,100 last year, accounting for 40.5% of registered households nationwide.

Single-person households have become the dominant family structure in Taiwan, exceeding the combined proportion of two- and three-person households for the first time, data show.

In 2020, the total number of households nationwide was approximately 8.933 million, of which single households accounted for approximately 34%, households with two persons accounted for approximately 20.5%, and households with three persons accounted for approximately 18.1%, according to statistics from the Ministry of the Interior.

At that time, two-person and three-person households combined accounted for about 38.6%, which was about 4.6 percentage points higher than single households.

However, the total number of households nationwide increased to about 9.85 million last year, an increase of about 917,000 from five years ago, a significant increase.

During the same period, the number of single-person households increased by 951,100, significantly exceeding the growth in the total number of households nationwide during the same period.

The proportion of single-person households surged to 40.5% last year, exceeding the 38.19% of households with two and three persons combined, data show.

Regarding why single households have become the dominant structure in Taiwan, a real estate agent said that in addition to the main factors - unmarriage and infertility - there are other related factors, such as Taiwan's super-aged society.

Zeng Jingde, manager of Xinyi Housing's research and development department, said the number of marriages has dropped in the past few years - about 100,000 to 120,000 couples per year - while the annual delivery of new homes is 120,000 to 170,000 units.

The number of single households is growing significantly faster than the number of marriages and new home deliveries each year, he said.

In addition to single people buying houses, the new housing tax policy that will take effect in 2024 may also be a factor, Zeng Jingde said.

The policy increases the tax burden on multi-home owners, he said, adding that collection of the tax began last year.

To qualify for the preferential tax regime for owner-occupied residences, the owner must complete household registration for the property, Zeng said.

Given the higher tax burden on new properties, the policy triggered a wave of household registrations, so the number of single households between 2023 and last year may be overestimated, he added.

News source: TAIPEI TIMES

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