Owner-occupancy or home-ownership is a form of housing tenure in which a person, called the owner-occupier, owner-occupant, or home owner, owns the home in which they live. The home can be a house, such as a single-family house, an apartment, condominium, or a housing cooperative. In addition to providing housing, owner-occupancy also functions as a real estate investment.

Acquisition Some homes are constructed by the owners with the intent to occupy. Many are inherited. A large number are purchased as new homes from a real estate developer or as an existing home from a previous landlord or owner-occupier.

A house is usually the most expensive single purchase an individual or family makes and often costs several times the annual household income. Given the high cost, most individuals do not have enough savings on hand to pay the entire amount outright. In developed countries, mortgage loans are available from financial institutions in return for interest. If the homeowner fails to meet the agreed repayment schedule, a foreclosure (known as a repossession in some countries) may result.

Many countries offer aid to prospective homebuyers to make their purchases. These measures include grants, subsidized mortgages, and mortgage guarantees. Prospective homebuyers may have to meet certain means-tested qualifications to qualify for government aid, such as being a first-time homebuyer or having an income below a certain threshold.

Pros and cons Perspectives regarding the benefits and risks of owner-occupancy are not universally accepted and depend on individual circumstances and motivations.

Home ownership gives occupants the right to modify the building and land as they please (subject to government, homeowner association, and deed restrictions), protects them from eviction, and creates a right to occupation which can be inherited. Passed-down properties can be rented (as in intentional or accidental landlording) or sold as part of an estate. In some jurisdictions, it also confers certain legal rights with regard to abutters.

Houses and the land they sit on are often expensive, and the combination of monthly mortgage, insurance, maintenance and repairs, and property tax payments are sometimes greater than monthly rental costs. Buildings may also gain and lose substantial value due to real estate market fluctuations, and selling a property can take a long time, depending on market conditions (low market liquidity). This can make home ownership more constraining if the homeowner intends to move at a future date. Some homeowners see their purchase as an investment and intend to sell or to rent the property after renovating or letting the house appreciate in value (known as flipping if done quickly). In 2024, the median American homeowner's net worth was about US$400,000, and the median American renter's net worth was US$10,400.

Renting may be more beneficial than owner-occupancy when the renter requires flexibility in moving to where work opportunities are. When a long-term work situation is settled upon, the renter may then reassess the costs of renting and home ownership.

Traditionally, home ownership has been encouraged by governments in Western countries (especially English-speaking countries) because it was one way for people to acquire generational wealth under the commodification of housing, it was believed to encourage savings, and it was thought to promote civic engagement. However, the housing market crash during the 2008 financial crisis in most of the English-speaking world has caused academic and policy-makers to question this logic.

Political influence Owning a home influences how an individual views the role of government. Data from OECD countries shows that when housing prices rise, individuals are more critical of the welfare state. Conversely, when housing prices drop, homeowners are more likely to favor government intervention. In the US, areas with high rates of homeownership have higher levels of voter turnout. There is also a weak relationship between homeownership and supporting Republican candidates. Data from the UK supports the idea that homeowners view the value of their home as a kind of private, informal insurance policy against economic shocks. A sufficiently valuable home protects the owner without need for government intervention.

José Luis de Arrese, the Falangist minister of housing in Francoist Spain explicitly called for "a Spain of home owners" rather than "proletarians". Decades later, home owners are one of the groups who would oppose policies diminishing the price of housing.

Homeowners are usually required to pay property tax (or millage tax) periodically. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located; it may be paid to a national government, a federated state, a county or geographical region, or a municipality. Multiple jurisdictions may tax the same property. In most Canadian provinces home purchasers must pay a one-time tax called a Property Transfer Tax (Land Transfer Tax) which is based on the cost of the home.

International statistics The home ownership rate is the ratio of owner-occupied units to total residential units in a specified area.

Country % Owner-Occupied Units in Urban AreasHousing Finance Information Network (HOFINET) Urban Population,% of TotalHome ownership rate%Year——95.32023 67% 92%68.92017 96% 64%—— 68% 89%66.32020——54.32023 71% 52%————71.92023——91.22007 74% 87%70.82022——65.02019 87% 73%86.12023 68% 81%66.52021 69% 89%—— 89% 45%96.02022 50% 75%—— 75% 94%————91.22023——90.02014——68.82023 47% 74%76.02023 54% 87%60.02023——49.92007 37% 43%76.02019——80.72023——69.22023——69.22023 47% 78%63.12023 43% 74%47.62023——69.62023 60% 48%—— 53% 100%50.42023 93% 68%90.52023——75.02021 87% 30%86.62011 67% 54%84.02019——60.52017——69.42023——64.62019 80% 68%75.92024——55.02021 96% —98.02024 — 22%75.02019——95.92015——82.82023——88.82023——67.62023 — 19%—— — 72%76.92019——74.72023 71% 78%80.02009 — 58%————91.02023 62% 57%————85.52014 69% 35%————86.02021 59% 83%70.22023 67% 87%64.52018 10% 50%25.02019——85.82023 77% 78%79.22023——83.02014 — 38%82.02023 66% 75%—— — 72%—— 80% 66%—— 78% 61%87.32023——76.02023 97% 54%95.62023 81% 73%92.62023 — 19%————62.12019 — 43%————91.62023 87% 100%87.92020——93.62023——75.22023 62% 62%69.72021 56% 82%57.32021 85% 77%75.32023 82% 15%—— 41% 85%64.92023 40% 74%42.32023——83.92010 — 26%—— 75% 34%74.02021——76.02013 78% 67%—— 81% 70%56.72023 — 13%—— — 68%————28.02017 50% 90%65.22023 65% 82%65.72024 59% 93%—— 83% 94%—— 79.8% 38.6% 89.7% 2024 — 38%——

See also Home ownership in Australia Homeownership in Germany Homeownership in the United States Imputed rent Negative equity Ownership Property

References

Further reading Kwak, Nancy H. A World of Homeowners: American Power and the Politics of Housing Aid ( University of Chicago Press, 2015). 328 pp.

External links – Aggregation of Federal Reserve economic data