Undesirable housing market positions - ways in and out. Connections between housing, mobility and labor market participation

The aim of the project was to examine the importance of housing policy, labor market policies and migrations to get out of low-income situations, weak ties to the labor market and poor housing conditions. A disadvantaged household in the housing market was defined as having income below 60 percent of the median income in their local housing market and at the same time being a tenant. Poor living conditions mean that a household lives overcrowded in a rented dwelling. The project used registry data for the period 2005-2013 for those living in four major cities in 2008. A survey was conducted in 2017 to a sample of disadvantaged households who received a start-up loan and to a control group who did not receive a start-up loan. A high proportion of the disadvantaged in 2008 have immigrated from abroad in the period 2005 to 2008. In the period 2008-2013 disadvantaged households had significantly higher residential mobility than non-disadvantaged households, especially related to migration from the inner boroughs. The rate among disadvantaged was pulled up by migration abroad. This was predominantly households with minority backgrounds. The income level in 2013 was lowest for the residents in the central districts, but also in certain areas of the outer districts. The highest incomes are among the migrants to the surrounding municipalities and to the rest of the country. The average income was lowest among the disadvantaged in moving streams which included a high proportion from the Africa, Asia and Turkey countries. Here we also find the highest proportions with housing benefit and social assistance. Owners' establishment with start-up loans often involved purchases in the outer districts with a relatively lower house price level, especially in Oslo. Compared to start-up loan recipients, households in the control group were to a much larger extent living in the inner city as tenants. High labor market participation and couple formation strengthened the chance of getting a start-up loan, rather than being a result of becoming a homeowner. Our results suggest that the start-up loan has had a significant impact on ownership status in 2013. Only one in four in the control group became owners in the period 2009-2013. The survey show housing conditions in 2017, various sources of income, labor market status, assessments of the current housing situation and mapping of various forms of public assistance and support, support from employers and colleagues, relationships with neighbors as well as participation in various activities and cultural events. More than 4 out of 10 households in the control group became owners during the 9-year period 2008-2017. These owners have many of the same characteristics as the start-up loan receivers, both in terms of financial resources, household type, relocation, public assistance and support, as well as social relationships with both the workplace, family/friends and neighbors. Our impression is that these have become owners during the period without public assistance and support and that couple formation and income increase have laid the foundations and been a prerequisite for home ownership. The tenants in the control group have a significantly higher share of singles and lower incomes than the owners from the control group. The residents of municipal dwellings came out worse when it comes to claims related to the dwelling and the living environment. In particular there are large differences between residents of municipal dwellings and the other tenures when it comes to the poor influence on children from the bad housing environment. They participate less in parenting meetings and less in organized leisure activities and receive the least help and support from family, friends and neighbors alike. Municipal tenants participate less in social gatherings with family and friends and at cultural events. We are unsure whether the pattern we have uncovered in terms of the help and support of the public, family, friends and neighbors has had an impact on whether the household has become a homeowner or not. Contact with the housing office and NAV is probably a prerequisite for obtaining information about and being able to take advantage of the start-up loan scheme. The owners of the control group have a good social network but have rarely been in contact with the housing office. Through favorable income development and extensive couple formation, these have become owners without the use of start-up loans. Municipal tenants have the worst economy, are more often single and have great challenges in establishing themselves as owners, regardless of social contacts and good contact with housing offices and NAV. The middle group of private tenants is similar to many areas of the homeowners from the control group, and may seem to be in a phase where home ownership is the next step, not least this is likely by the strong increase in employment rates between 2015 and 2017.

I opprinnelig prosjektsøknad ble det ikke sagt noe om potensielle virkninger og effekter. Et av formålene med forskningsprosjektet var å forbedre kunnskapen om sammenhengen mellom bruk av boligsosiale virkemidler og hva slags effekter de faktisk har, i tillegg til de direkte resultatene. Spørsmålet vil alltid være hva som ville skjedd med mottakerne uten at virkemidlene ble brukt. En av analysene, som har klart å definere en kontrollgruppe, gir grunnlag for å si noe om effekter av startlånet brukt i de største byene til lavinntektshusholdninger. Dette vil være nyttig kunnskap for utforming og vektlegging av virkemidlene, spesielt for Kommunal- og moderniseringsdepartementet som i 2019 har startet arbeidet med å lage en stortingsmelding om boligsosialt arbeid. Kunnskapen fra prosjektet kan også være nyttig for et ekspertutvalg som regjerningen oppnevnte i 2019 og som skal utrede levekårs- og integreringsutfordringer i områder i og rundt de store byene i Norge.

The objective of the project is to understand the mechanisms that lead into and out of situations with low incomes, insecure and poor housing conditions and homelessness. We link changes in housing conditions and geographic mobility with different outcome s in the labour market and other forms of social integration. The importance of housing policy for possible exits will be stressed, but we will also examine how labour market policy, other welfare arrangements and residential mobility patterns interact with housing policy. An important dimension of the proposed project will involve studying these processes amongst households in deprived areas and contrast our findings with similar processes in other more "average" areas. The project will be based on a combination of statistical analyses of Norwegian register data for the period 2005-2011 and a survey collected in 2014. Low income households in 8 areas in 2008 will be the population for the register analysis. Half of the areas will be deprived areas. A sample of low income households in poor housing conditions in the six city areas in 2008 will constitute the population for the survey. Collecting survey data has the purpose of giving a general description of the development in housing conditions and challenges facing people with low income combined with insecure housing or poor housing conditions. In addition we will analyze longitudinal EU-SILC data for Norway, Sweden and Denmark until 2012 and do in depth interviews with people who have managed to escape a situation with poor housing conditions and exclusion from social arenas. The selection of people to be interviewed will be based on findings from the survey data. A multilevel approach is chosen because pure quantitative or pure qualitative indicators cannot inform us about the multiple mechanisms involved in transformative processes. Statistics Norway will provide us with anonymous register - and survey data for Norway as well as with EU-SILC data.