Like the UK, the US is a nation of homeowners. Although millions have lost their homes to foreclosure in recent years, 81% of Americans still believe that buying a home is the best long-term investment one can make, down only very slightly compared to 1991. Home ownership is supported by a policy environment that has encouraged it via a range of fiscal initiatives, and a mortgage market that – until recently – made it easy for most qualified households to obtain a loan.

But for many in today's economy, home ownership is out of reach. While the vast majority of the US's 39 million renter households would like to become homeowners, three quarters cannot afford to make this transition. Unemployment and underemployment have suppressed household incomes, and although lower than during the bubble, home prices are still not affordable for many working families. The rented sector will therefore continue to play a significant role in housing Americans, particularly low- and modest-earning Americans, in years to come. The same is true in the UK. It would take the average low- to middle-income household in the UK 21 years to accumulate a deposit to buy the average first-time buyer home, assuming that they save 5% of their income each year.

In the US, as in the UK, roughly one third of all households live in a rented home, but there are considerable differences in the share that live in subsidised housing. The UK currently takes a much more direct approach to achieving the goal of affordable housing for low- and modest-income families, directly subsidising housing in two main ways: either by the state providing accommodation through social housing, or through subsidising private sector rents via the benefits system in the form of a means-tested Housing Benefit. In total, roughly 17% of all households in England live in social rented housing. In contrast, only about 7 million of the 39 million renter households in the US – or 6% of all households – live in federally assisted housing, a number that falls not only well below England's experience, but also far short of demand given that more than 9 million renters nonetheless spend more than half of their income on housing.