How deregulation of rental housing market was justified and opposed?

What is it about?

The Finnish housing regime stands out from other Nordic welfare state regimes. This article analyses debates in the Finnish parliament over the deregulation of the private rental market between 1990–1995. The complete abolition of rent regulation was quite exceptional in the European context and the liberated rental housing market rapidly became such a normal state of affairs that since this time rent regulation has not been greatly reconsidered. This paper analyses different discursive practices that were used to support and oppose deregulation of rental market in three different stages of the deregulation process. The social and cultural representations of rental housing, the rental market, and tenants and landlords are reflected in political discourses and these reflections mould and remould housing policy. This article shows how discourses used in the debates changed along the way and how rental housing policy was moulded to be favourable for deregulation. Deregulation was supported with discourses emphasising the market economy and freedom of choice. Opponents of deregulation used discourses that constructed tenants as requiring protection and highlighted state involvement in the rental housing market. Thus, the Finnish rental housing market was constructed as problematic and at first deregulation was met with considerable suspicion. However, as the deregulation process proceeded, the liberated rental market became more accepted even among critics. Keywords: deregulation, housing policy, private rental housing, discourse analysis, Finland

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Why is it important?

The analysis in this paper contributes not only to the understanding the case studied (deregulation of rental housing in Finaland) but also to the analysis of deregulation processes in general and to the development of discourse analysis in housing research.

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