Converting Public Housing to Individual and Cooperative Ownership: Lessons from Foreign Experience

摘要

The experience of other governments in converting public housing to private ownership is addressed, and lessons are drawn for the United States. The characteristics of European experiences and the various models developed to transfer public housing to individual and/or cooperative ownership are examined, with a special focus on the United Kingdom. Five major models have emerged: individual homeownership, shared equity between government or an association and the individual, condominium association, co-ownership association, and nonequity cooperative. Data are provided on the size of various programs. An assessment of the program's impact considers the politicization of policy and financial and social implications. Thirteen lessons drawn from foreign experience include the following: selling public housing at discount prices offers an important option to many low-income and moderate-income households, who might not otherwise have been able to accede to homeownership; sales have been overwhelming in detached, semidetached, duplex, and terrace houses; the best housing units are sold first; substantial discounts in the market price of housing units appear to be essential incentives; and large-scale sale of public housing tends to concentrate the lowest income households, particularly ethnic minorities, into the lowest quality projects. Tables with footnotes are supplied. An appendix provides additional tabular data on income, number of earners, type of building, age distribution of housing stock, and unfitness of housing stock in England and Wales.