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I get it. It is buried deep in the psyche for clear reasons. My point is, I think, that it looms too large in the psyche. And ownership doesn’t always bring the benefits that the psyche craves. And carries costs that the psyche didn’t anticipate. Ownership of anything shouldn’t define us.

With all due respect, to say that home ownership defines anyone is totally bollocks. Jim believes in it, you don't. What defines you both is that you are both highly respected economists with an influential and successful podcast. Home ownership is a complete irrelevance.

Aw, come on! You can’t say home ownership is a massive part of someone’s psyche and then say home ownership has not got anything to do with identity! Ask a shrink!

On the question of cost of ownership, I'm as DIY-phobic as you. However I have long thought that a home is a living thing like a car or a person. If you don't maintain them in appropriate manner they will eventually break down and be harder to fix. It goes with the territory.

Its why my parents sent me and my sister home as babies to live with our grandparents for nearly 10 years while they worked all the hours god sent to save for a house deposit before they brought us back to London to live with them.

CJ may be right about European countries, but they have proper regulations to protect tenants and publicly owned, high quality, reasonably priced, rental housing stock. All in total contrast to the UK.

It's why the Land League was probably the most powerful political organisation in 19th Century Ireland. It spawned Parnell and Davitt, and was supported by Archbishop Croke who had a park somewhere named after him.