Fixity in Verticality: A Pilot Exploration on Residential Mobility of Public Housing in Malaysia
Khairiah Mokhtaruddin - PhD Student at the Department of Social Administration and Justice, Universiti Malaya
One of the memorable quotes in Matthew Desmond’s Evicted is “the rent eats first” (Desmond, 2016). It encapsulates the prohibitive cost of housing and how rent needs to be prioritised by households. Paying this fixed expense first leaves little left for other needs such as food and other utilities. In instances where rent is heavily subsidised by the State, the general assumption and idea is that tenants could save up, move up, and exit subsidised rental housing. Whether this form of housing assistance is sufficient for residents, often coming from low-income households, remains to be seen as many struggle to have enough savings, increasing their opportunities to move up the proverbial social mobility ladder. Avenues to exit public housing to other forms of housing may also prove to be a scarce opportunity.
Thus, this widely acceptable and reasonable sequence - where savings are made from subsidised rental - need to be debated and explored further. Unpacking this is especially important through the lens of the residents themselves, the ones who are living in verticality as they the ones who are working odd or multiple low-paying jobs. These are the communities who are also often accused of dependency on government welfare provisions (Dantzler, 2021).
In this preliminary exploration, public housing is defined as housing owned and managed by the government, including companies appointed by the government or state-owned enterprises to manage the complex. For the purpose of this study on public housing in Malaysia, past research and literature related to social housing and mobility is considered to make sense of the vast universe of housing studies and considering its overlap within the housing market continuum.
Public Housing and Mobility
In Australia, social housing functioned as a safety net during precarious periods, a short-term stepping stone, or a springboard for longer-term change (Baker et al, 2021). Therefore, it is a dynamic system throughout the housing pathway taken by the households. The study looked at whether there is a relationship between social housing assistance and the ecology of overall government assistance in spearheading and sustaining the trajectory of movement within the housing pathway. It found that social housing can positively impact employment opportunities, serving as a springboard for social mobility. However, exit from social housing - the springboard - does not indicate financial independence as they require other forms of social assistance to remain afloat.
In an earlier study looking at housing mobility, Wiesel and Pawson (2015) found that housing mobility is lower for those living in subsidised housing. This could be attributed to the reluctance to let go of below-market rental rates regardless of opportunities presented. This suggests cost-benefit analysis conducted by the household to gauge whether movement out of subsidised housing will create a better pathway or otherwise. This also aligns with past study that showed residents decide whether to move to other forms of housing based on housing conditions and policies in place (Causa & Johansson, 2009). Therefore, policies aimed to increase exit from social housing needs to be carefully crafted and considered, looking at the overall housing ecosystem and housing pathway that exist to ensure and encourage sustainable exit from social housing.
Looking at the narrative of contemporary social mobility, education is seen as a lever for upward social mobility. However, there are criticisms of the emphasis on individual triumph and notions of meritocracy as the golden avenue for moving up the socioeconomic ladder (Durst & Huszar, 2022). The discussions of social mobility, especially when the target group are those who are stuck at the bottom, often point to the amount of resources that has been allocated to uplift the low-income communities yet it ignores the heterogeneity of issues that causes barriers and prevents opportunities, continuing to create the illusion of levelling the playing field.
Framing Capability for Mobility
Taking aspirations from the Capability Approach Framework by Amartya Sen (Robeyns, 2017), this study explores the lived experience of residents in public housing. It broadly looks at what it means for residents to be able to do and to be. It looks at their pursuit of upward social mobility and aspirations to move to other forms of housing, if any. The findings were shared at the Housing Studies Associations Annual Conference in April 2024, and it was based on a pilot conducted in February to March 2024. The pilot served as an avenue to assess out interview questions and method of analysis of four public housing residents before undertaking full data collection.
This qualitative research is based on purposive sampling, whereby participants had to rent for at least for 8 years in public housing. This eliminates public housing complexes that consists of rent to own schemes or those who were given the opportunity to purchase the unit (Ministry of Housing and Local Government Malaysia, 2016). All four respondents were married with children, ranging from 8 to 15 years of tenure in the same public housing complex. Out of the four respondents with the average age of 49.5, only one was male, and the earliest entry into public housing was a woman at 26 years old. The interview ranged between 45 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes, with the rich data analysed using Atlas.ti using initial codes, as themes and patterns identified across cases.
Preliminary Findings
“Public housing should act as transit for people who are able to move elsewhere… but I am not in that position to do so yet… Maybe in the future I can.”
Respondent 1, 44-year-old female with six children.
Upward Intergenerational Social Mobility
Preliminary findings discovered that residents experience some form of intergenerational social mobility as far as education and employment is concerned. This is aligned with trends across the region as the nation experienced a fair share of prosperity through development efforts and economic growth. Migration from rural to urban also facilitate the changes in the types of employment and job opportunities based on the location of residence. All four respondents had parents who were informal workers ranging from agriculture, fishery to odd workers. All four residents have stints as blue-collar worker post compulsory education as full-time or part-time worker. Their employment duration ranges from three months in total to 40 years of service prior to retirement. For respondents with working age children report that their children are employed in administration and some hold managerial positions in multi-national companies (Respondent 3). While the study did not track specifically as to specific points in which the employment takes place between generations as this is solely dependent on recall instead of longitudinal data, this indicates an intergenerational upward social mobility solely based on employment category and education level.
Aspirations to Move
As far as experiences in public housing, residents undertake various forms of cost-benefit analysis to decide whether to remain in public housing or to exit. All four respondents have social contacts who have successfully exited public housing (exited and did not return) to private housing which includes building their own homes in acquired land away from the city of Kuala Lumpur. When probed further as to whether they would like to leave, the desire exists. This is especially so when the conversation centres on the overall liveability in public housing such as neighbours’ attitudes toward cleanliness and concerns over safety of their children. However, this negative affect is moderated when other factors chime in such as rental affordability, existing social network, and their children’s education opportunities. Therefore, aspirations exist but actual capability is hindered by financial constraints and social capital (Respondent 4: “knowing the right people at the right time who can help you with a loan for downpayment”)
Anchors to Stay
The types of networks within and outside public housing helps to support their decision to remain. Comparison with other public housing complexes is also factored in. For instance, Respondent 2 shared that having a relative residing in other public housing complexes with anecdotally more social ills gives her comfort that her current residence is comparatively better. In addition, Respondent 2 also shared that having her sister residing in the same complex, albeit different block, helps with domestic affairs. Therefore, the burden of care and chore are lifted as it is supported by social network.
Between laments of overall liveability, when asked if they would like to purchase the unit they are currently residing at the current subsidised price if the government allows them to do so, all four respondents positively responded that they would like to own their current rental unit. When probed further, the anchors are existing social network, familiarity with the services provided within the geography, and having the unit as an asset for their household. This signifies that the residents view their current unit as both a physical asset and financial asset despite various dissatisfaction over the quality within the walls and the complex.
Conclusion: In Perpetual Transition
While the residents did acknowledge that they felt public housing should be a springboard for longer term change, they remain in between safety net and stepping stone. Exiting prematurely may result into further precarity, and considerations for leaving are often hinged by whether they are able to do so with the current financial resources that they have, social networks that are supporting them on a daily basis, and a sense of familiarity and routine that their household experience throughout their duration of stay thus far.
Earlier in March 2024, the Malaysian government announced its intent to introduce a new model of public housing that aims to be well-integrated, sustainable, and liveable. It emphasises green spaces and community centre, while accommodating for commercial viability, among others. The emphasis of this new model is on its financing, upgrading its construction cost to RM300,000.00 (approximately GBP 53,400.00) sold at RM60,000.00 (approximately GBP10,700.00), with up to RM15,000.00 (approximately GBP 2,700.00) set aside for maintenance and sinking funds. It also plans to impose a moratorium of 10 years to safeguard the heavy subsidy afforded - an attempt to shield away from irresponsible parties taking advantage, The new model looks to replace the older public housing initiative whereby the construction cost is estimated to be at, with opportunity for purchase at RM35,000.00 (approximately at GBP5,200.00 in 2007) and current rental rate at RM124.00 (approximately GBP22.00). Therefore, this form of public housing is intended as homeownership for the low-income communities.
Whether this new model could fill up the vacuum between public rental housing and low-cost or medium-cost private housing remains to be seen despite the attractive cost to own. However, based on the preliminary findings, liveability and integration is an important aspect that residents in public rental housing consider, whether they experienced intergenerational social mobility or otherwise. However, at the top of the list remains the affordability for them to exit public rental housing to other forms of housing. This affordability issue is further anchored with their current social networks and sense of belonging, posing difficulty to exit to other forms of housing.
References
Emma Baker, Anh Pham, Chris Leishman, Lyrian Daniel & Rebecca Bentley (2020): Urban Social Housing Pathways: A Linked Administrative Data Analysis, Urban Policy and Research, DOI: 10.1080/08111146.2020.1838894
Dantzler, P.A. (2019) Reconsidering poverty dynamics by analyzing housing spells. The Social Science Journal, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soscij.2019.06.004
Desmond, M. (2016). Evicted. Penguin Books.
Durst, J. and Huszár, Ákos (2022). Individual success, collective failure? The process and consequences of social (im)mobility in neo-liberal times. Intersections. East European Journal of Society and Politics. 8, 2 (Jul. 2022), 1–11. DOI:https://doi.org/10.17356/ieejsp.v8i2.1046.
Ministry of Housing and Local Government of Malaysia (2016) Rent-to-Own, RTO, https://www.kpkt.gov.my/index.php/pages/view/497
Robeyns, I. (2017) Wellbeing, Freedom, and Social Justice: The Capability Approach Re-Examined. Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0130
Note: A heartfelt thank you to Housing Studies Charitable Trust (HSCT) for the generous bursary provided to ensure participation and presentation of this pilot study at the Housing Studies Association Conference 2024. A record of appreciation also goes to the organising team and committee members of HSA 2024 for their support and commitment, especially to novice researchers and early career researchers.
