Between homeownership and rental housing: exploring the potential for hybrid tenure solutions

Owner-occupation and rental housing have dominated the discourse on housing. While they are the most prevalent tenures across housing markets, the overwhelming focus on these two ways to access housing has limited the discussion and overlooked innovative tenure combinations that are potential solutions to promote greater access to decent housing. This article explores the grawee (گروي) mortgage system in urban Afghanistan. The paper argues that intermediate options between homeownership and rental housing, such as the grawee system, have significant potential to strengthen access to affordable, decent housing beyond the customary homeownership and rental tenures.