Property Relations and Landlordism—a Realist Approach

Abstract

Analysis of the role of concepts in urban social research is largely an undeveloped area. Justification of the adoption of particular forms of classification in studies are rarely offered and are often passed over in favour of a discussion of the more tractable areas of empirical research. In this paper the practice of conceptual analysis adopted in one sphere of urban research, landlordism and property relations, is evaluated and criticised for its unreflective mechanistic approach. Invariably, the object (landlordism) is subjected to a form of analysis which treats it as if it were analogous to an onion, from which layers may be peeled off, one after another. It is argued that this mode of analysis does not reveal the economic and social properties that constitute different types of landlordism, which, in turn, may provide the basis for an understanding of the spatial variation in the structure of the market for privately rented housing in Britain. An alternative mode of conceptual analysis, based upon the principles of a realist philosophy of science, is proposed, which has the potential to explain the structural unevenness of the rental market and the roles adopted by different groups of landlords in this market.