Housing Tenures
6.26 Whilst additions to the housing stock are an important influence on access to housing, the type of tenure (i.e. private ownership or social-rented) provided through new and existing dwellings also influences the extent to which housing is accessible and affordable.
6.27 The changes in tenure outlined in the figure reveal a higher percentage of owner occupation in the South West compared with England generally. Furthermore, social housing (local authority owned) accounts for a smaller share of the total housing stock in the South West (11%) than for England (19%).
6.28 Over the period 1991-2005 owner occupied dwellings accounted for most of the growth in absolute numbers. In 2005, 74% of homes were owner occupied, whilst 13% were owned by Registered Social Landlords (RSL). The fastest growth in percentage terms was in dwellings let by RSL although a large proportion of this growth was through the transfer of housing stock from local authority ownership, rather than through new dwellings.