How long should housing last? Some implications of the age and probable life of housing in England

The objective of this comment is to supplement the paper by Meikle and Connaughton, published in this journal. That paper concentrated on the non-replacement of an ageing housing stock, and the maintenance implications of the recent shift towards owner-occupation in England. The ethics behind this trend of tenure change were not questioned; an acceptance of 'individual' ownership and responsibility seemed apparent. The relative success of public sector housing management was not considered. This comment will aim to address this. While recent changes in housing tenure will create new problems to overcome, and will therefore need to be examined carefully, a multitude of existing problems remain. This comment will seek to illuminate one problem area: the effective management of multiple-unit housing stocks, and how this may provide a framework for the maintenance of the nation's ageing housing stock.