The Kemeny approach and the case of Finland

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
According to Jim Kemeny, there is a group of advanced capitalist societies which can accurately be characterized as home‐owning societies. In home‐owning societies owner‐occupation dominates the consumption of housing, the cost‐rental housing sector is not large and it functions as a means for housing those unable to buy a house. Home‐ownership is a privatized form of housing consumption and its domination reflects the general nature of society. The aim of this article is to test if this approach is applicable to the Finnish housing system. The system of tenures in post‐war Finland is briefly described and discussed. The structure of tenures in Finland is increasingly similar to that of the home‐owning societies. This justifies the view that Finland can be considered as one of the home‐owning societies. This conclusion can serve as a starting point for further research informed by the hypotheses, observations and concepts included in the theory. The Finnish case also highlights the need for further elaboration of certain concepts as well as the adjustment of some generalisations within the approach.