Rising inequalities in access to home ownership among young households in France, 1973-2013

Amongst young households (ages 25 to 44), inequalities in first-time home-ownship and in the amount of acquired real estate assets have increased between the most modand the most affluent groups over the past forty years. According to Insee’s Housing surve32% of young low-income households were homeowners in 1973, as compared to only 16% 2013. Beyond the role of macroeconomic and institutional factors (real estate prices, interrates, term of loans granted, etc.), a decomposition of changes in ownership rates over the perusing the “Oaxaca-Blinder” method highlights the role of changes in family structures (increing proportion of single-parent families, decline in the share of couples with children in the mmodest households) and the sharp decline in small rural home ownership. Family support – assistance, inheritance and other forms of aid – also played an important part in the 2000s: fout of ten recent homeowners benefited from it, two out of ten even receiving direct financassistance for their purchase. This support increased significantly among wealthier househoduring the 2000s, contributing to a widening gap with the share of homeowners in the lewell-off populations.