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While housing tenure has long been considered a key determinant of life satisfaction, its effects remain inconsistent across socioeconomic and demographic groups. Drawing on longitudinal data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS), this study applies an ordered logistic panel model to examine how the relationship between housing tenure and life satisfaction varies by income level and life stage. Contrary to the common assumption that homeownership universally enhances well-being, the analysis finds no significant tenure effect in the full sample. However, disaggregated results reveal important heterogeneity. Among low-income households, long-term homeownership is positively associated with life satisfaction, while short-term transitions are linked to reduced well-being – likely due to debt-related stress. In contrast, tenure has negligible or even negative effects among middle – and high-income groups. A life-course perspective further indicates that tenure benefits are most salient in midlife, with limited effects in early or later adulthood. Neighborhood satisfaction consistently emerges as a stronger predictor of well-being than tenure status itself, especially for low-income individuals. Moreover, a counterintuitive negative association is found between long-term housing adequacy and life satisfaction, particularly among higher-income respondents, reflecting rising expectations over time. These findings highlight the conditional and dynamic nature of housing effects on well-being. Rather than promoting homeownership as a universal ideal, housing policy should be tailored to reflect the diverse needs of different socioeconomic and life-stage groups. The study contributes to the literature by integrating theoretical insights with panel-based empirical analysis, offering practical implications for more equitable and context-sensitive housing strategies.
Son et al. (Sun,) studied this question.