Housing is one of the most basic needs of communities. Residential buildings constitute the highest percentage of all structures in communities, evident at state, country, and local scales. Economically, a home is generally a household’s largest financial investment. From a resilience perspective, housing damage and collapse account for a significant portion of disaster losses. Reports indicate that access to desirable housing has been one of the biggest challenges for governments in many developing countries. These governments have struggled to solve housing problems due to their one-dimensional, linear, and traditional view of the issue. Desirable housing, in general, is defined by its safety against natural and human-made hazards (such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes), affordability, and acceptable quality. These criteria provide comfort and convenience for tenants and ensure the safety, resilience, and sustainable growth and development of society. Achieving these goals involves many parameters and variables. Desirable housing encompasses social, political, economic, legal, and technical and engineering aspects, all of which are interconnected. A change in one aspect can affect others. Furthermore, desirable housing involves numerous stakeholders, and differing goals among these stakeholders can hinder the main objective of the system (achieving desirable housing). Given the variable parameters influencing desirable housing and the existence of stakeholders with diverse goals, desirable housing is a complex phenomenon. Therefore, this article aims to take a comprehensive look at housing issues in developing countries using a system-thinking approach. It examines the importance of system thinking in achieving desirable housing and considers complexity theory within the housing system.