Parental Wealth and First-time Homeownership: A Cohort Study of Family Background and Young Adults’ Housing Situation in Sweden

This paper investigates whether family background seems to have any influence on first-time homeownership. Recent studies have indicated that it has become more difficult to become established in the housing market and such situations may increase the importance of parental wealth. In this study, parental wealth is estimated as family background information on parents’ homeownership, father’s socioeconomic status and single parenting. Unique cohort data for three birth cohorts suggest that there is a significant cohort effect in young adults’ tenure decision. Furthermore, the results imply that parents’ homeownership has become a more important predictor of the transition to first-time homeownership for those young adults facing increasing problems in the housing market.