Guam real estate statistics show an island housing market shaped by a 2020 population of 153,836, a near-even owner-renter split, and substantial variation in household needs. The latest figures here come from the Census Bureau’s 2023 ACS DP04 table, while the detailed household and housing-cost measures come from the BSP Guam 2020 DHC release. Earlier figures from the Guam Comprehensive Housing Study 2009 and a Pacific Daily News report on a 2009 DOD environmental impact statement are retained as historical or projected measures, not current observations.
Contents
- Current housing supply and vacancies
- Ownership, home values, and rents
- Population and household characteristics
- Housing affordability and household resources
- What buyers and renters wanted
- Historical housing growth and projections
Current housing supply and vacancies
The Census Bureau’s 2023 ACS DP04 table recorded 13,256 total housing units in Guam. Of these, 11,293 were occupied and 1,963 were vacant. The resulting inventory included a 1.6% homeowner vacancy rate and a 6.2% rental vacancy rate. These are 2023 measures for Guam, not a current listing count or a real-time availability estimate.
The same table shows a housing stock with a large one-unit detached segment. Guam had 7,744 one-unit detached housing units and 109 one-unit attached units. It also had 172 two-unit buildings, 404 buildings with three or four units, 418 buildings with five to nine units, 60 buildings with 10 to 19 units, and 124 buildings with 20 or more units. The table counted 4,225 mobile homes.
| 2023 Guam housing measure | Count or rate |
|---|---|
| Total housing units | 13,256 |
| Occupied housing units | 11,293 |
| Vacant housing units | 1,963 |
| Homeowner vacancy rate | 1.6% |
| Rental vacancy rate | 6.2% |
| One-unit detached units | 7,744 |
| Mobile homes | 4,225 |
The unit-type figures help distinguish Guam’s housing inventory from a market made up only of conventional detached houses. Detached units were the largest reported category, while mobile homes also represented a substantial named segment in the 2023 table. The data does not provide asking prices, days on market, or the reason each unit was vacant.
Ownership, home values, and rents
The BSP Guam 2020 DHC release reported that householders in occupied units were split between 52.0% owners and 48.0% renters. In the same release, Guam’s median home value was $277,800 and median monthly rent was $1,057. These measures describe Guam in 2020 and should not be read as 2023 sale prices or current advertised rents.
Housing-cost pressure differed by tenure. Among homeowners, 16.1% spent 35.0% or more of household income on housing costs. Among renters, the comparable share was 34.0%. The two percentages use the same 2020 release but describe different groups, so they are best read as a tenure comparison rather than as a measure of individual household budgets.
The ownership rate also has a historical reference point. The Guam Comprehensive Housing Study 2009 reported a 48% homeownership rate in 2000 and 49.5% in 2009. Because those figures come from an earlier study and the 2020 figure comes from the BSP release, the series should not be treated as a single uninterrupted annual trend.
Household structure helps explain why a single median can hide different housing requirements. In 2020, one-person households accounted for 15.8% of households. Married-couple families represented 67.2% of Guam’s 34,804 family households, while 3,709 cohabiting couple households represented 8.5% of all households. Another 2,343 households, or 5.4% of households, had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and children under 18.
Population and household characteristics
Guam’s 2020 population was 153,836, including 78,271 males and 75,565 females. Males made up 50.9% of the population and females 49.1%. The median age was 33.7 years. Residents age 65 or over accounted for 11.2% of the population, and residents age 85 or over accounted for 0.8%. Children ages 0 to 17 made up 27.0%.
These age figures point to a population with both family housing needs and an older-adult segment. Household composition adds another layer: 15.3% of family households were multigenerational. Among adults age 30 and over in households, 9.6% were grandparents living with their own grandchildren under 18. Of grandparents living with grandchildren, 36.1% were responsible for their basic needs, and 54.3% of grandparents caring for grandchildren had been responsible for them for at least five years.
The BSP Guam 2020 DHC release also reported that 67.9% of women age 15 and over in households had ever given birth. The median length of marriage for currently married men and women age 15 and over was 19.1 years. Together, these figures describe household relationships and caregiving patterns that can affect preferences for bedrooms, bathrooms, accessibility, and multigenerational space, although the source does not quantify those design choices directly.
Guam’s population also had notable language and education measures. Among people age 5 and over, 57.3% spoke a language other than English at home; 65.9% of those speakers said they spoke English very well, and 42.8% spoke Philippine languages. Among residents age 25 and older, 86.0% had at least a high school degree and 25.3% had a bachelor’s degree or higher.
Housing affordability and household resources
Median household income was $58,289 in the BSP Guam 2020 DHC release. Among people in households with determined poverty status, 20.2% had income below the poverty level, and 21.8% of households received SNAP benefits. These measures describe economic conditions across households and are not a substitute for mortgage-qualification data or neighborhood-level affordability analysis.
Housing-cost shares show why tenure matters. The 16.1% homeowner share at or above 35.0% of household income in housing costs was less than half the 34.0% renter share. The figures do not identify whether the difference reflects rents, mortgage payments, household income, household size, or other costs.
The 2009 Guam Comprehensive Housing Study supplied additional historical indicators of prospective buyers’ resources. Nearly three-quarters of prospective buyers had at least $5,000 in family savings or investments. Among current owners without equity, 67% said they could gather $40,000 for a down payment; among current renters, 49% said they could gather that amount. The study also reported that 23% of potential buyers had household income above 140% of the HUD median.
Technology access was widespread in 2020: 72.4% of households had a desktop or laptop computer, 92.3% had a smartphone, 60.6% had a tablet or other portable wireless device, and 85.9% had a broadband internet subscription. These are household technology measures, not real estate sales indicators, but they provide context for how homes were equipped and connected during the measurement period.
What buyers and renters wanted
The Guam Comprehensive Housing Study 2009 recorded stated preferences among households that wanted to move. Among those households, 45% planned to own their next unit and 34% expected to rent their next home. These are survey results from the 2009 study, not a forecast of current tenure demand.
Potential buyers strongly preferred single-family homes: 86% wanted that type, and about half would accept a condominium if they could not find a single-family unit in their price range. Bedroom needs were divided between at least two bedrooms, reported by 38% of buyers, and at least three bedrooms, reported by 44%. For bathrooms, 43% could live with one and 47% could live with two. The smallest acceptable buyer unit averaged 1,225 square feet.
Location preferences also varied. More than 40% of buyers would choose Northern Guam, typically Dededo and Tamuning. Among buyers who preferred North or Central Guam, 61% would at least consider Southern Guam. The study further reported that 34% of potential buyers owned their own homes and that 57% of those owner-occupant buyers had lived in their unit for more than three years.
Future renters showed a related but more flexible profile. Sixty-four percent wanted single-family homes, while 23% preferred an apartment. Seventy-six percent preferred three- or four-bedroom units. At the same time, 97% would accept a unit with one fewer bedroom and 66% could live with one fewer bathroom. The smallest acceptable renter unit was just over 1,000 square feet, about 18% smaller than the buyer minimum.
Among future renters, 42% wanted Northern Guam and 21% wanted Central Guam. About one-third of renters with a North or Central preference would consider the South. These location figures measure stated preferences in the 2009 study and do not establish present-day migration or submarket shares.
Historical housing growth and projections
The Guam Comprehensive Housing Study 2009 reported about 53,673 housing units in 2009 and estimated the population at just over 176,000. It recorded average household sizes of 4.83 in 1970, 4.07 in 1980, 3.97 in 1990, and 3.89 in 2000. The study also reported 38,769 occupied housing units in 2000.
Historical population growth varied by decade. The study described growth of about 10% to 15% per decade between 1950 and 1970, almost 25% per decade between 1970 and 1990, about 16% in the 1990s, and an estimated 15% in the 2000s. Housing inventory grew by 25% between 1980 and 1990 and by 35% in the 1990s; growth expected for the 2000s was 12.5%.
The same study said median home values had been climbing since 2003 in its 2009 housing outlook. That is a historical statement from the study and does not provide a current price trend.
A separate Pacific Daily News report on the 2009 DOD environmental impact statement described projections tied to the proposed military buildup. The peak 2014 population was projected at 267,665, including 79,178 new people on island by 2014. Without the buildup, the projection was 190,042 in 2014 and 222,166 by 2030. The buildup estimate included 33,126 off-island workers arriving by 2014.
The report said GHURA would need to add 3,300 to 3,800 affordable units by 2014 under the lower housing-demand estimate. To meet total buildup demand, Guam would need to increase housing production capacity by 2,600 units per year, while the private housing industry was building anywhere from 400 to 1,000 units per year in 2009. GHURA provided housing opportunities for people at 80% or below of median household income, described in the report as about 52% of the island. These were planning estimates connected to a proposed buildup, not measured 2014 outcomes.