"The American Dream? The Private and External Benefits of Homeownership"

Grace Wong Bucchianeri, Wharton

Abstract

Using a unique data set that links up well-being and housing consumption, I measure systematic differences between homeowners and renters in a wide array of time use and well-being measures. While homeowners report to be happier on an unadjusted basis, they do not report higher levels of well-being by any measure in this data set when demographics and income are controlled for. Their time use patterns reveal little evidence of them being "better citizens". Homeowners who live in ZIP code areas with higher rates of homeownership report more positive attitudes only if other owners are similar to them in socio-economic terms, lending some support to the idea of beneficial social interaction among owners.