Credit Controls Hit Taiwan’s Housing Supply Chain, Survey Finds Major Business and Job Cuts

Taiwan’s housing downturn is spreading beyond property sales into construction, employment and supplier demand, according to a survey commissioned by Housing Magazine and conducted by Kun Shan University and I-Shou University.

The August 2026 survey collected 900 valid responses from property developers, construction companies, real estate sales services, building-material and equipment suppliers, and engineering-service firms. Business owners or senior executives accounted for 58.7% of respondents, while decision-makers or people directly responsible for operations made up 81.4% when sales managers and staff were included.

The survey found that 74.3% of companies had experienced declines in business, orders or new projects, and 64.5% reported less actual construction, project or workload. Among 371 companies whose activity had fallen by at least half, 288, or 77.6%, had also reduced their permanent workforce. Overall, 55.8% of respondents reported fewer permanent employees, while 41.7% said they were leaving vacancies unfilled.

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Many real estate agents themselves work on an unpaid basis, receiving commission income only when a sale is completed.

The adjustment often appeared outside standard layoff statistics. Companies reported encouraging leave or flexible holidays, reducing the workdays of temporary or outsourced workers, rotating staff and shortening working hours. Only 12.3% reported formal reduced-hours arrangements, and 8.6% reported unpaid leave or pay cuts. Assistant professor Chu Yueh-chung said many real estate agents work without fixed salaries and earn commissions only after completing sales, meaning official figures may not capture the sector’s employment pressure.

The outlook remains cautious. If conditions continue, 44.4% of companies expect to leave vacancies unfilled in the second half of 2026, while 29.8% plan to reduce recruitment and 25.4% expect to cut permanent staff. Since September 2024, 44.1% had delayed some projects or investments and 35.8% had canceled them. The research team said future monitoring should track orders, working hours, outsourced labor demand and capacity use, not only formal employment. Professor Chang Chi warned that the property sector affects many industries and urged the government not to misread its business and employment conditions.

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The government should not misjudge the property market’s business conditions and employment environment.