ANALYSIS OF THE CHANGING INFLUENCES ON TRADITIONAL HOUSEHOLDS OWNERSHIP PATTERNS

Sociological and economic forces have begun to alter ownership pattern s in ways not yet captured by movements in the aggregate ownership rat e. While demographic factors such as marital status and family structu re remain influential in determining tenure choice, their impact has w aned, particularly among the best educated households and those with r ising real incomes. Labor market conditions, as evidenced by increasin g returns to skill, are more strongly felt than ever before in the hou sing market. The impact on owning of being highly educated now rivals the influence of being married with minor children. Increasingly delay ed ownership is a reality, even for traditional family units with 36- to 45-year-old heads that have not prospered in the labor market. The rising real cost of even relatively inexpensive suburban housing is al so beginning to be reflected in a heightened impact for real family in come on tenure choice. Finally, race currently is more adversely influ ential in determining suburban ownership for young, middle-aged minori ty families than it was in 1960, particularly if the household head is not well educated. We suspect this is due to racially disparate impac ts of increasingly rigorous zoning regulations and higher impact fees in the suburbs. (C) 1996 Academic Press, Inc.