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Opportunities and Constraints in Housing Private Tcnants in Plymouth Josephine Andrea Wright a Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfi

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Opportunities and Constraints in Housing Private Tcnants in Plymouth Josephine Andrea Wright a Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfi University of Plymouth PEARL https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk 04 University of Plymouth Research Theses 01 Research Theses Main Collection 1991 OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS IN HOUSING PRIVATE TENANTS IN PLYMOUTH WRIGHT, JOSEPHINE ANDREA http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/1903 University of Plymouth All content in PEARL is protected by copyright law. Author manuscripts are made available in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite only the published version using the details provided on the item record or document. In the absence of an open licence (e.g. Creative Commons), permissions for further reuse of content should be sought from the publisher or author. OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS IN HOUSING PRIVATE TCNANTS IN PLYMOUTH JOSEPHINE ANDREA WRIGHT A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILICNT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE COUNCIL FOR NATIONAL ACADEMIC AWARDS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTC» OF PHILOSCM'HY POLYTECHNIC SOUTH WEST DEPARTMENT OF APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES OCTOBER 1991 PGLYTECHNiO SOUTHWEST LIBRARY SERVICES 1000 78906-jJ JWlUIULLJ-lLJLli^ OPPORTUNITIES AM) C0NSTRAir4TS IN HOUSING PRIVATE THh4ANTS IN PLYMOUTH by Josephine Andrea Wright ABgTBACT This thesis makes a contribution to research concerned with access to housing, but differs from the mainstream studies, both In Its use of an individualist approach to illuminate differential opportunity within the housing market, and in its focus on private tenants. Its main purpose is to seek explanations for the variations In the housing situations of different types of privately renting household In Plymouth. This is achieved through an examination of the households* financial and employment circumstances, and through an exploration of the constraints on choice which the households had experienced in the course of searching for accorrmodat ion. The work also examines the households' views on their ability to exercise choice over tenure, and their expectations as to future housing. The vast majority of the households had low incomes, and renting privately had been seen as their only tenure option. Most were also very limited in their ability to choose accorrmodat i on within the private rented sector. Overall, the Plymouth survey found that constraints associated with the market (landlord discrimination, the cost and availability of property) were more important than individual factors (aspiration level, time to search, urgency of housing need and distance from search area), in determining the quality of thn acconmodation obtained. Discrimination was experienced by all types of household, but for the unemployed, and especially for families, it caused severe difficulties of access. It emerged as the most significant factor associated with the presence of such households in the worst quality housing. The higher Income households tended to occupy the larger, more self- contained accofTfnodat Ion, but income did not play a part in the quality of the housing obtained. The use of personal contacts %ras, however, highly important in easing access to the sector. With the exception of the pensioners. nearly all looked to alternative tenures for their future housing, and tenure expectations were associated with occupational and family status. On the whole, the private rented sector was found to provide high cost, poor quality housing, and the realities of landlord/tenant relationships meant that most households felt they had little tenure security. Because of the problems Involved in addressing these concerns, and the Insurmountable problem of landlord discrimination, the study argues for a nuch greater emphasis;on social provision of rented housing. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I should like to acknowledge the assistance received from a nurrfcer of individuals and organisations during the preparation of this thesis. M/ thanks are due first to the people I interviewed, without whose co-operation this study could not have taken place. I am Indebted also to Ken Dean of the College of St Mark and St John, Plymouth, for his guidance In clarifying ideas at the start of this project. My thanks go also to David Armitt, formerly of Shelter, Plymouth; to Chris Sanchez and the other staff at Plymouth Rent Office, and to the staff of Plymouth City Housing and Environmental Health Departments, especially David Renwicki Phillip Doldge and Jim Davis, who went out of their way to provide Information. I should also like to thank my fellow researcher, Dr. Mark Hyde, for the many useful conversations and heartening advice. I am especially grateful to Dr. Ian Levitt, for his Invaluable supervision and continuous encouragement throughout the course of this project, and to Lyn Bryant, for her very helpful corrments, her enthusiasm and unstinting support. Finally, special thanks must go to my son Ian, for his consideration and patience, and to my husband, Tom, for all the cooking, cleaning, brow-mopping, dish-washing, proof-reading, cajoling, word-processing, child-rearing, sympathizing, listening, and more. 111 COMIENTS Page Abstract 11 Acknowledgements iii Contents iv List of Tables vlii List of Figures xi Definitions xii II^ROOUCTION CHAPTER I: PERSPECTIVES ON ACCESS AM) HOUSING SlTUATICriS 1. 1 INTRODUCTION 1.2. TtC INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH 6 The neo-Marxist approach 8 1.3. THE IM)IV1DUALIST APPROACH 12 Research into reasons for moving 12 Research into housing searches 16 t. 4. T^C MOVEMENT PROCESS IN THE PRIVATE RENTED HOUSING SECTOR 24 CHAPTER 2: HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES IN COTfTEyr 2.1. INTRODUCTION 29 2.2. THE CHANGING CHARACTER OF PRIVATE RENTING 29 Housing opportunities in the late 1800s and early 1900s 30 Housing conditions 34 Rents and security of tenure 46 Housing benefits 57 The decline of the private rented sector 60 2.3. PRIVATE RENTING: THE PRESENT SITUATION 67 a) The.character of the private rented Bector 67 Privately renting households 67 Private tenants and their housing i) Legal situation 69 li) Housing conditions 71 iii) Housing costs 73 b) Access to lettings 78 2.4. HOUSING IN PLYMOUTH 84 Pressures for housing and the problem of land 84 Demand and access in the local housing market i) The owner-occupier sector 85 ii) The council sector 87 lti> Housing associations 90 iv) The private rented sector 92 iv CHAPTHR 3: RESEARCH METHODS 3.1. ir»n"ROOUCTION 97 3.2. THE DEFINITION OF 'HOUSEHOLD' Al^ Tit SELECTION OF TfC HOUSHOLD GROUPS 97 3.3. SELECTION OF THE INTERVIEW SCfrCDULE TECWIQUE 101 3.4. DESIC3N OF T« IMTERVIEV SCHEDULE 107 3.5. SELECTION OF IHE SM^LS 112 3.6. THE PILOT SURVEY 117 3.7. FIELDWORK 119 3.8. DATA PREPARATION AND ANALYSIS 122 3.9. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SAMPLE POPULATION AM> LENGTH OF RESIDENCE 125 The sanple cheracteristics 125 Length of residence 127 Footnotes 128 CHAPTER 4: HOUSING C0M)ITyC3NS +.1. irfTROOUCTlON 129 4.2. PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF THE HOUSING 130 4.3. THE QUALITY OF THE HOUSING 134 Minimum standards for houses in multiple occupation 136 Space 138 Natural light 139 Artificial light 140 VentiIat ion 140 Personal washing facilities 141 Sanitary conveniences 142 Facilities for storage, preparation and cooking of food and for the disposal of waste water (Kitchen facilities) 142 Heating 143 Refuse storage 144 Safety in case of fire 145 The satisfactoriness of housing 147 4.4. RESPOr^S TO HOUSING COM)ITIOre 149 Sharing 150 Landlords and repair problems 152 Repair and Improvements undertaken by households 156 Official help sought to deal with poor condit ions 159 Households' views on their general housing 162 condit ions CHAPTER 4: 4. 4. CONTINUED Summary 163 Footnotes 166 CHAPTER 5: LEGAL AM) FINANCIAL ASPECTS OF T>C ACCOrtlODATICN 5. 1. INTRODUCTION 169 5.2. UEGAL ASPECTS OF THE ACCOMMCOATI ON Security of tenure and the private rented sub-sectors 173 Security of tenure and rent books 179 Rent, registration 180 5.3. HOUSING COSTS Services and service charges 182 Rent and rates 184 Deposits 187 Surrmary 191 Footnotes 193 CHAPTER 6: INCOME AM> EMPLOYMENT DIFFERENTIALS AND HOUSING SITUATIONS 6. 1. INTRODUCTION 6. 2. INCOME, WORKING SITUATION AM) OCCUPATIONAL STATUS Income 167 Working situations 202 Occupatlonal status 203 6. 3. INCOrC AND EMPLOYTCNT DIFFERENTIALS AND HOUSING SITUATIONS 206 SutriTBry 214 Footnotes 216 CHAPTER 7: THE TENANTS' HOUSING E)CPERIENCES AND THEIR FUTURE PLANS 7. 1. INTRODUCTION 219 7. 2. SITUATION WITHIN THE PRIVATE RENTED SECTOR 221 7. 3. SITUATION WITHIN PARTICULAR PRIVATE RENTHD ACCOrtiODATION 227 Reasons for moving 228 Aspirations over accotnrodation 230 Influences on aspirations 234 Use of information sources 236 Informal sources 236 Formal sources 238 Experiences on application 245 Feelings of choice over housing 255 Vi CHAPTER 7: 7.3. CONTIf^JED Changing aspirations 258 Acceptance of vacancies 262 Housing searches and housing outcomes 265 7.4. HOUSEHOLDS' FUTURE PLANS AM) PERCEIVED PROSPECTS 277 Households' future plans 278 Applications for local authority housing 28t Tenure choice, expectations and preferences 283 Sutrmary 290 Footnotes 293 CHAPTER 8: SU»»1ARY AND CONCLUSIONS 8.1: INTRODUCTION 298 8. 2: ACCESS AM) OUTCOMES 299 8.3: sort POLICY CONSIDERATIONS 309 Footnotes 322 APPENDICES 323 Appendix A: Supplementary Tables 324 Appendix B: Chi-square Test Results 346 Appendix C: Definitions: Disrepair, Damp and hffiO Standards 355 Appendix D: Questionnaire 361 REFERENCES 390 VI L LIST OF TABLES Page 2.1: Household profile by tenure 65 2.2: Household profile by legal sub-sector 70 2.3: Self-containment, amenity provision and crowding by tenure and household type 73 2.4: Rent and rates by legal sub-sector 74 2.5: Rents, incomes and benefits by legal sub-sector 75 2.6: Rents, incomes and benefits by household type 75 2.7: Households renting privately in Plymouth: comparisons with other similarly sized non-metropolitan cities and with Greater London 92 2.8; Corrposition of households renting privately in Plymouth: comparisons with other cities 93 2.9: Housing conditions of households renting privately in Plymouth: comparisons with other cities 95 3. 1: Distribution of privately renting households in the seven central wards.
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