A document by UN-Habitat, Nairobi, on rental housing – an essential option for the urban poor in developing countries. This report finds that rental housing is at least a partial answer to the housing problems faced by many people both in developed and developing countries are facing. The report also finds that rental accommodation is often inadequate in which tenants and sharers who live would fail any conscientious housing inspection. This report is pragmatic, and not visionary in this regard. Governments should not close their eyes to reality. They should not perpetuate the myth of the achievability of universal home ownership. Instead, they should accept that millions of households live in rental housing and that at some point in their lives most people need rental accommodation.

Few governments have taken rental housing very seriously over the last thirty years. The report reveals the current level of neglect and suggests why the extent of encouragement given to homeownership has been misplaced. It then describes the diverse forms that rental and shared housing take before examining some of the myths that underpin much thinking about the rental issue. Finally, it suggests what governments might do to encourage landlords to create more and better quality accommodation for rent. The report discusses rental housing throughout the world but its main message is intended for governments in developing countries.