From poor tenants to resident landlords: De facto social housing homeownership in Brussels

Workshop 2. Session A Abstract. Numerous studies have analysed how household structure, position on the labour market and educational factors influence choices of housing tenure. They have shown that the probability of becoming homeowners is higher for married individuals, those in secure employment or those with a higher educational level. In our contribution, we analyse how, despite this general model, people with low socio-economic profiles became homeowners in Brussels, especially during the eighties. With only 8% of housing stock in public ownership, most low-income households in Brussels have to find accommodation in the private rental sector, mostly in low-price neighbourhoods. Hence, the private rental sector largely operates as \u93de facto social housing\u94. But in these neighbourhoods, homeownership is another part of \u93de facto social housing\u94. Our analysis shows that some low status households become homeowners in a particular way: they buy a small depreciated house consisting of two or three apartments, use one of them for themselves and let the others out. This strategy offers them a source of finance for their purchase. We show that at least 50% of homeowners in the poorest neighbourhoods are such \u93resident landlords\u94. This is especially the case for migrant households of Turkish or Moroccan origin. Thus, in Brussels inner-city neighbourhoods, a significant proportion of landlords have socio-economic and ethnic profiles similar to those households looking for an apartment to rent. This portion of the housing market offers low-income households an alternative to the mainstream private rental market in which social and/or ethnic discrimination is frequent