Housing Partnerships: A New Approach to a Market at a Crossroads proposes the development of new "Partnership Markets" that can help make millions more Americans home owners without putting them in the poorhouse.

The acceptance and institutionalization of "Limited Partnerships" between prospective owners and financial institutions could assist many in attaining their long-sought goal of owning a home. Under these arrangements, would-be home owners can exercise the option of owning part of a house; the other portion would be financed with an institutional investor, who provides capital for the house in exchange for a portion of the sale price.

By financing a portion of a home, buyers can devote less time to saving for a down payment, greatly reduce their expenses with smaller mortgages, and retain more of their income to spend, save, and invest. For the broader financial community, Partnership Markets would provide new opportunities for diversification into the residential real estate market.

Housing Partnerships: A New Approach to a Market at a Crossroads provides the blueprints of the Housing Partnership structure and the new opportunities it furnishes home owners, while explaining the economics behind the housing and mortgage markets and the financial risks in owning a home.

The book looks beyond the benefits to households and considers the concept's wider effects, including changes to the secondary mortgage market, the government's role and changes in housing policy, and the composition of assets held by institutions.