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Schmid, Christoph U. --- "Introduction" [2018] ELECD 47; in Schmid, U. Christoph (ed), "Tenancy Law and Housing Policy in Europe" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2018) 1

Book Title: Tenancy Law and Housing Policy in Europe

Editor(s): Schmid, U. Christoph

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN: 9781788113977

Section Title: Introduction

Author(s): Schmid, Christoph U.

Number of pages: 18

Abstract/Description:

Alongside homeownership and social housing made available and/or funded by the State, private renting, that is housing supplied through private contracts on the market, has always played a significant role in Europe, though its share has differed hugely in different countries at different times. After World War II, communism and socialism in Central and Eastern Europe strongly limited or even abolished private renting in favour of the public provision of housing, albeit niche and black markets have always continued to exist. In Western European countries, the importance of private renting has declined in the post war decades as a result of multiple reasons: the demolition of existing, pre-war poor-quality private rented dwellings; the conversion of private rented dwellings into owner-occupied or social rental units; the preference of large parts of population for homeownership which could be realized more easily in times of prosperity, in many cases combined with the promotion of homeownership by public housing policies through subsidies or tax privileges;2 finally, the negative impact of protective regulation in favour of tenants, in particular on rent control and security of tenure, which discouraged landlords and investors from offering housing space on the market, as the return on other investments proved to be higher. Yet, recent decades have shown again a growing interest in private renting in almost all European countries.3 In Central and Eastern Europe, private markets have been re-established after the fall of Communism and promoted through processes of privatization and restitution of formerly State-seized property;4 however, the effectiveness of private renting is still hampered by problems of access to justice, unbalanced regulation and informal contracting.5 In Western European countries, widespread fiscal constraints have prompted States to reduce the share of publicly owned or funded social housing6 as well as the amount of subsidies to promote home ownership. In addition, new policy initiatives such as tenure neutral subsidies for landlords and tenants7 as well as more balanced regulation of private contracts have boosted the private rental sector, whose importance for the State as a ‘low cost’ provider of housing has been rediscovered by left and right wing governments alike.