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1
Introduction
Housing policy is typically geared toward affecting the behavior of housing
market actors through various economic means of control. One example of
this is the housing allowance
1
extended to low-income households
(Bengtsson, 2006, p.14). The assumption underlying this selective support
is that, in the absence of such governmental paternalism, low-income
households would consume inadequate housing, either because housing
market demand exceeds the supply, or because they value other kinds of
consumption more (cf. Olsen, 2008). Housing allowances seek to induce
households to move into better housing, thereby increasing their housing
consumption. However, the exact impact of a housing allowance on its
beneficiaries’ housing consumption depends on how they perceive the
support—as a reduction of the housing price, a general income supplement,
or a permanent or temporary increase in income—and on the extent to
which they understand the regulatory framework. A necessary condition for
justifying housing subsidies to low-income households is that they have real
effects on recipient outcomes, in line with the stated aim of the policy.
Furthermore, housing allowances have been criticized for creating poverty
traps and lock-in effects.
Sweden’s housing standards, including for overall living space, are
relatively high from an international perspective, and this applies to all
forms of housing tenure. Swedish overcrowding norms specify the
minimum living space, i.e., the number of rooms that a household of a
certain size should have to be considered not overcrowded. The first norm
was established in the mid 1940s.
2
New norms were defined as housing
standards and policy developed. Norm 3 was formulated by the
governmental housing committee in the 1980s and was specified as a
benchmark and specific goal of Swedish housing policy; according to this
norm, a household is considered overcrowded if each family member does
not have a room of his or her own (couples are assumed to share a room),
not including the kitchen and living room.
3
The EU’s agreed-on indicator of space shortage is also specified in line with
the third Swedish norm (Eurostat 2010, p.152). According to the EU, a
1
Housing allowance is the term used in the Nordic countries and much of Europe; it is known as
the housing voucher and rent certificate (in the USA), shelter assistance (in Canada), and
housing benefit (in the UK).
2
A household was considered overcrowded according to norm 1 if more than two family
members were sleeping in each room, not including the kitchen. According to norm 2, defined in
the 1960s, a household was overcrowded if more than two family members were sleeping in each
room, not including the kitchen
and
one room (living room).
3
This means that a family with one child should have at least three rooms and a kitchen, a
family with two children, four rooms and a kitchen, and so on. Accordingly, the norm states only
whether or not a household lives in overcrowded conditions; it does not state the degree of
overcrowding. Furthermore, if norm 3 were to be strictly interpreted, all young people who live in
one room and a kitchen would be considered to be living in overcrowded conditions. However,
the housing committee states that, for young people, one room and a kitchen constitute a good
alternative to living with their parents.
