ABSTRACT
The chapters contained in this volume provide a snapshot of contemporary housing dilemmas facing rural America at the onset of the new millennium. Rural housing in the twenty-first century raises a unique set of issues; some of which are common to urban and suburban housing but require an understanding of important and uniquely rural contextual differences. These include uniqueness with respect to ownership, physical housing attributes, demographic structure, income inequality, the hedonic role of natural amenities, and public policy tools. The influence of postindustrial transitions on the structure of rural housing requires an understanding of the general lack of economic alternatives in many rural regions and the heterogeneity in economic structure present in rural America. Indeed, the Carsey Institute's three rural America's (as described by Ward in Chapter 9) provide a valuable typology to understanding the varying development contexts related to rural housing structure.
