Risk and security in home owning and renting. An interview study in Sweden

by Eva Andersson, Forskningsrapport/Research Report 2008:1

How do Swedes relate to choices of tenure, financial matters, and risks and securities associated with housing in their daily life? The aim of the project reported here was to examine how households and individuals perceive and experience security and insecurity aspects of housing and tenure in relation to their personal lives, socio-economic position and employment situation. A central hypothesis was that homeownership provides homeowners with a level of security that distinguishes them from renters and, thus, creates different citizenships within Sweden. One result was that owning a home is rated as more secure today, whereas renting was regarded as more secure before. High rents in rented housing together with low interest rates on loans and increased housing equity/wealth form the basis of this change in perceptions among the interviewees in 2005.

Eva Andersson holds a PhD in Social and Economic Geography. She is Assistent Professor in Social and Urban Geography at the Institute for Housing and Urban Research, Uppsala University.

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