JRF Housing Market Taskforce
How can we achieve long-term stability in the housing market for vulnerable households?
Contacts
Addressing the root causes of instability in the housing market.
Key issues
- The UK housing market has a negative impact on vulnerable households in both its high and low extremes.
- During a boom, households can feel pressured to take on risky mortgages to become home owners. In a downturn, they face the threat of rising arrears, repossessions, homelessness, overcrowding, use of temporary accommodation and competition for low-cost rented accommodation.
- Without intervention this cycle will continue.
- Current interest in the housing market is focused on short-term changes to help stabilise the market. Insufficient thought has been given to how to protect and support vulnerable households in the long term.
JRF has established a 'Housing Market Taskforce' – a small group of interdisciplinary experts who will build on existing evidence with new analysis, ideas and consultation with specialists. The Taskforce will:
- identify the principles that should support a more 'socially sustainable' housing market, i.e. one in which extreme fluctuation between 'boom and bust' is avoided and vulnerable households are less exposed to its consequences;
- set out possible policy approaches to achieve these principles.
The JRF Housing Market Taskforce's final report is due to be published in winter 2010/2011.
For more background, read the Investigations summary (PDF, 140KB).
More information on JRF's most recent work on the housing market is available on the sustainable home ownership page. This includes a Round-up of evidence from previous periods of instability.
