The family housing sector in urban Ghana: exploring the dynamics of tenure arrangements and the nature of family support networks

In urban West Africa, living rent-free in family-owned houses is common among the low-income population. Drawing on research from Kumasi, Ghana, this paper explores the dynamics of this non-market tenure, in terms of the nature of family support networks/reciprocity and how collective ownership and multiple-occupancy arrangements affect dwelling conditions and the rights derived by tenants. The practice of extending support among members of the kinsfolk, underpinned by traditional values of reciprocity, were found to be stable within the present-day family house. However, the younger generation of residents expressed the view that to support members of the kinsfolk was overburdensome given the prevailing economic hardship and their limited resource capacity. Tenure security across generations was not guaranteed for access-by-privilege residents. Also, shared-ownership meant that for the majority of residents, the family house could not serve as a productive asset from which wealth could be released in response to economic shocks. Most households crowded in single rooms, shared strained housing facilities and lacked privacy. These dynamics could potentially turn preferences away from rent-free family housing in the future, and thus generate a greater need for rental housing in the city. Affordable rental housing development would be required to adequately meet the emerging need.