The Myth of Home Ownership: Private versus Public Choices in Housing Tenure

Originally published in 1981, in this controversial study Dr Kemeny aims to show that owner-occupation is not an inherently superior form of housing tenure to renting. He questions the overwhelming emphasis upon owner-occupation in English-speaking countries as reflected by most politicians and many academics, and argues that the deep emotional commitment to home ownership has prevented both the objective analysis of housing tenure and the emergence of environmental policies that maximise choice. In the first part of the book home ownership is placed in comparative perspective through a critical examination of its supposed advantages, such as security of tenure, and a discussion of its wider disadvantages, notably its exacerbation of housing inequalities and the ‘privatizing’ effect which it has upon consumption patterns, urban structure and social welfare. The second part is a detailed consideration of three contrasting societies: Australia, a ‘home owning’ society; Sweden, where cost-renting is widely available; and Britain, where public renting and home ownership are maintained in uneasy compromise. In conclusion Dr Kemeny argues that English-speaking countries should abandon their one-sided policies and aim to develop real choice of tenure in their housing systems. Today it can be read in its historical context.