Conceptualizing the Rental Housing Market Structure in Ghana

Gavu, Emmanuel Kofi

doi:10.1080/10511482.2020.1832131

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…For decades, government intervention in the housing market in Ghana has tended to prioritise homeownership over other forms of housing tenure (Gavu, 2020). This has been reflected in the government’s direct provision of housing, the establishment of housing finance institutions and implementation of neoliberal reforms that have predominantly served the interests of private real estate developers and by extension the middle and higher-income households who can afford the houses being developed by these private real estate developers (Ehwi, 2019; Gillespie, 2018) at the expense of the masses and the rich slum dwellers (Asiama, 1984).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The authors did not set out to generate a representative sample of each region because such data does not exist. There is no data set of renters in Ghana nor the list of rental properties available for Ghana even at a fee (Baffour Awuah et al , 2016; Gavu, 2020). Due to data asymmetries, authors used innovative means to target possible respondents for the survey.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The dwelling units developed by these individual households are mostly family houses designed either as compound or detached houses offering rent-free accommodation to household members (Danso-Wiredu and Poku, 2020; Tipple et al , 1994). As indicated in Asante and Ehwi (2020) and Gavu (2020), a compound house is a single-level or multi-storey building, where occupants have exclusive access to a dwelling unit and share common facilities and a compound space. Two main types of dwelling units are available in compound houses: single rooms [1] and hall-and-chamber units [2] ’ .…”

Section: The Political Economy Of Housing Provision In Ghanamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Towards a well-informed rental housing policy in Ghana: differentiating between critics and non-critics of the rent advance system

Ehwi

Asante

Gavu

2021

IJHMA

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Purpose In Ghana, the practice of landlords demanding that renters pay rent advance (RA) of between six months and five years is well noted. Surprisingly, renters appear divided into the benefits and drawbacks of the rent advance payment. Ahead of the 2020 general elections, the two leading political parties in Ghana promised to establish a rent assistance scheme to help renters working in the formal and informal sectors and earning regular incomes to pay their RA. This paper aims to scrutinize the differences in the demographic, employment and housing characteristics between the critics and non-critics of the RA payment in Ghana and the factors that predict the likelihood of being a critic of the RA system. Design/methodology/approach The study is exploratory and draws empirical data from surveys administered to 327 graduate renters from 13 regions in Ghana. It uses non-parametric and parametric tests, namely, Chi-square goodness-of-fit and T-test to explore these differences between both critics and non-critics of the RA. Findings There are statistically significant differences between critics and non-critics in terms of the association between their educational attainment on the one hand and their marital status, employment status and employment sector on the other hand. The research also reveals that monthly expenditures, number of bedrooms and RA period significantly predict the likelihood of being a critic of the RA payment or otherwise. Practical implications The study provides evidence which policymakers can draw upon to inform housing policy. Originality/value The study is the first to study the housing characteristics of graduate renters and to quantitatively distinguish between critics and non-critics of RA payment in Ghana.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Political Economy Of Housing Provision In Ghanamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Towards a well-informed rental housing policy in Ghana: differentiating between critics and non-critics of the rent advance system

Ehwi

Asante

Gavu

2021

IJHMA

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“…A number of scholars have also studied urban informality from various perspectives in Africa. These include (1) housing strategies for low‐income populations (Gillespie, 2018; Danso‐Wiredu and Poku, 2020; Ehwi et al ., 2020; Gavu, 2020; Migozzi, 2020; Adade et al ., 2022); (2) infrastructure delivery and spatial inequalities (Baptista, 2019; Amankwaa and Gough, 2021); (3) conceptual discrimination and biased governance and management (Amin and Cirolia, 2018; Cirolia and Scheba, 2019); and (4) climate‐related threats and sustainable development (Amoako and Inkoom, 2018; Finn and Cobbinah, 2022). Linking these perspectives to planning practices in Africa further highlights the influence of colonialism.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

HOUSING INFORMALITY IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH: Insights from a Policy Comparison between Accra and Buenos Aires

Wang,

Bazán

2023

Int J Urban Regional Res

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Informal settlement growth in various countries has led to distinctive actions that enhance low‐income populations’ accessibility to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services. This trend indicates the need for comparative studies between countries and cities to understand the factors that lead to policy learning opportunities. We conducted an experimental comparison between Accra, Ghana, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, to understand, first, how policies on informal settlements have been formed, and secondly, what inquiries should be made to address housing informality in the global South. A comparison shows that these cities/countries have shared moments of neoliberalization and that their poor residents have experienced similar struggles regarding housing availability and the pursuit of extensive governmental interventions. Therefore, their experiences are worth examining. Our comparison indicates that first, Buenos Aires/Argentina has adopted more inclusive policies regarding informal dwellers than Accra/Ghana, and secondly, that diversifying housing solutions are an inevitable dynamic in cities/countries experiencing a surge in housing pressure across classes, races and geographies. In this article we articulate how the governments of these countries have dealt with these challenges and conceptualize the coproduction needs of housing informality in developing countries. We encourage policymakers facing informality in the South to respond to the questions we raise about facilitating policy learning.

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“…This study was developed in response to this background; to garner a sound understanding of the structural characteris cs of the rental housing market in Ghanaian ci es towards building a fundamental basis for policy re-orienta on and interven on. A recent study by Gavu (2022) conceptualised rental housing in Ghana using housing typologies, housing forms, and submarket defini ons to pin down how the market func ons in a developing country context. Situated within the context of a market economy concep on the study draws on documentary and empirical evidences from Kumasi.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Unpacking the Structure and Functioning of the Urban Rental Housing Market in Kumasi, Ghana

Dinye,

Dinye

2022

Redefining the Future of Real Estate in Africa: The 21st Annual AfRES Conference

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Urban Housing in Africa is dominated by the private rental sector. The sector delivers over 90 percent of housing units in urban Ghana. In spite of this, the urban rental housing sector appears unstructured, complex and informal. Using Kumasi as the primary case, this paper sought to answer the following ques ons: How is Ghana's urban rental housing market structured? Who are the main actors in the market and what are their roles? How do the rela onships and ac vi es of these actors shape rental housing? Rooted in the theory of market economy, the study adopted mul ple qualita ve methods, including observa on, focus group discussions; key informant interviews, ins tu onal consulta ons and document reviews to gather evidences. The paper reveals the non-existence of a comprehensive ins tu onal and policy framework for the delivery and management of rental housing; thus, giving rise to informal opera ons of the sector. In the face of rapid urbanisa on and rising costs of housing materials, the supply of rental housing lags behind demand leading to high costs of rent and exploita on by prospec ve tenants.

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Conceptualizing the Rental Housing Market Structure in Ghana

Cited by 5 publications

References 46 publications

Towards a well-informed rental housing policy in Ghana: differentiating between critics and non-critics of the rent advance system

Towards a well-informed rental housing policy in Ghana: differentiating between critics and non-critics of the rent advance system

HOUSING INFORMALITY IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH: Insights from a Policy Comparison between Accra and Buenos Aires

Unpacking the Structure and Functioning of the Urban Rental Housing Market in Kumasi, Ghana

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