Household financial resources, labor informality, and housing expenditure participation: Evidence from Vietnam
Main Article Content
Abstract
Purpose – This study examines housing expenditure participation among Vietnamese households, defined as whether a household reports any positive monetary housing-related expenditure during the survey period. It aims to distinguish housing expenditure participation from housing expenditure intensity, housing affordability burden, and housing quality.
Design/methodology/approach – The study uses household-level data from the 2022 Vietnam Household Living Standards Survey with 9,398 observations. A Probit model is estimated, and Average Marginal Effects are reported to interpret the results in probability terms.
Findings – The results show that household size is positively and significantly associated with housing expenditure participation. In contrast, total household consumption and urban residence are negatively and significantly associated with the probability of reporting housing-related expenditure. Labor informality has a negative coefficient, but the association is not statistically significant.
Practical implications – The findings suggest that housing expenditure participation should not be interpreted as a direct measure of housing welfare or affordability. A zero value may reflect owner-occupied housing, family-supported accommodation, informal arrangements, or other non-cash housing access mechanisms. Housing policy should therefore combine participation-based indicators with broader measures of tenure, housing quality, overcrowding, affordability pressure, and household welfare.
Originality/value – The study contributes to the housing literature by treating housing expenditure participation as a distinct survey-based outcome, separate from expenditure intensity and affordability burden.
Keywords
Household financial resources; Housing access; Housing expenditure participation; Labor informality; Vietnam
Article Details
Field of Economic (JEL Codes)
C25 - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models • Discrete Regressors • Proportions • Probabilities - Single Equation Models • Single Variables, D12 - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis - Household Behavior and Family Economics, J46 - Informal Labor Markets - Particular Labor Markets, R21 - Housing Demand - Household Analysis
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