Casual Work and Owner Occupation

Abstract

This paper considers the implications of a number of recent labour market changes for the maintenance of owner occupation. The prevalent emphasis upon the impact of unemployment on owner occupiers is discussed in relation to mortgage arrears and possessions, and contrasted with the limited recognition and attention given to the ways in which changing forms of employment enhance the risk of default (an argument which challenges the conventional assumptions of creditors and the state, where employment is seen as providing a `solution' to appears). Empirical data are presented to show the impact of casual work on owner occupier's ability to sustain housing costs. Some potential implications of the data for current sociological analyses of the ways in which the incidence and experience of different forms of employment and unemployment are shaped are discussed.