Housing Wealth and Young People

Seminar Description: We are pleased to announce that the Cross-national Data Center LIS and LISER convene the fourth international scientific workshop in the realm of the (LIS)2ER initiative. This endeavour of institutional collaboration between two main actors in Luxembourg’s research infrastructure is facilitated by the Luxembourg Ministry of Higher Education and Research. It was launched in November 2019 in memory of the late Tony Atkinson who has had a history of collaboration with both institutions. The initiative’s aim is to contribute to our knowledge of “What Works to Fight Inequality”. This year’s workshop is organised in collaboration with the PROPEL (PROactive Policymaking for Equal Lives) project, which studies the causes and consequences of housing inequality, and is funded by the FNR (grant number 14345912).

This year’s workshop tackles the topic “Housing Policy and Wealth Inequality”. The study of housing and wealth inequality is crucial and highly relevant in today's societies. Housing serves as a fundamental human need and is closely linked to households’ quality of life. Inequalities in access to safe, affordable housing can perpetuate cycles of poverty and limit opportunities for social and economic mobility. Importantly, housing accounts for the largest share in households’ asset portfolios and thus serves as a primary means of wealth accumulation over the life-cycle and across generations. Housing can be considered to be the `asset of the middle class’. In most developed countries, at least two-thirds of households own their primary residence, although this is mostly financed by mortgages. A climate of rising house prices since the 1980s, combined with more recent inflationary pressures, is threatening the middle-class vision of home ownership for all, which can lead to social unrest and political instability. It is therefore not surprising that housing is once again at the centre of political agendas.

Against this backdrop, the 2023 (LIS)2ER workshop aims to discuss research that enables an understanding of the root causes and consequences of inequalities in housing and wealth. The workshop provides a forum for the discussion of novel research and findings on these issues, and an opportunity for scholars to meet and exchange ideas.