Contrary to the conventional belief that owning a home improves life satisfaction, an empirical study has found that the effects of homeownership vary significantly depending on income level and life stage.
A research team led by Professor Choi Yeol, emeritus professor of urban engineering at Pusan National University, analyzed the short-term and long-term effects of homeownership using data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS) from 2008 to 2023. The team announced Wednesday that homeownership itself showed no statistically significant correlation with overall life satisfaction.
The researchers analyzed 2,860 individuals who participated in the survey for at least 10 years, separating the "effect at the moment of purchase" from the "long-term ownership effect."
The results showed that low-income households experienced higher life satisfaction when maintaining long-term homeownership. However, at the point of transition from renting to owning, their satisfaction actually decreased due to mortgage burdens and financial pressure.
In contrast, middle- and high-income households showed a negative relationship between long-term homeownership and life satisfaction. The research team interpreted this as expectations for housing quality rising over time, meaning homeownership does not necessarily lead to happiness.
The factor that showed the most consistently strong influence in this study was not homeownership but "neighborhood satisfaction." Higher satisfaction with the residential area's environment and living conditions was clearly associated with higher life satisfaction. This effect was confirmed across all income levels and life stages.
"The effects of homeownership are not uniform, and our long-term data confirms that expanding homeownership alone cannot be expected to improve quality of life," said Professor Choi Yeol, the corresponding author, and Dr. Son Hee-ju, the lead author. "Housing policy should move away from an ownership-centered approach and be designed to improve both regional environments and living conditions."
The study is scheduled to be published in the June 2026 issue of the International Journal of Urban Sciences, an SSCI-indexed academic journal.