Housing in UK New Immigration Destinations: Planning, houses of multiple occupation and the challenges of uncertainty

Abstract

This paper investigates housing in two rural New Immigration Destinations in the United Kingdom (UK) that have experienced substantial recent migration. It focuses on temporary and often overcrowded housing known as “Houses of Multiple Occupation” (HMOs). This paper has two main aims. Firstly, it adds to our knowledge of housing and HMOs in rural areas from the perspective of migrant occupiers and stakeholders. It documents that migrant-occupied HMOs were key issues in both case studies. Secondly, this paper establishes that there were notable challenges of uncertainty in managing housing and HMOs. The ways uncertainty was contested or accepted are investigated, noting that there is a political economy of certainty. This points to the value of improving evidence in addressing migration and housing.