Does the ‘Share Economy’ Improve Housing and Employment Choices? Examining Platform Enabled Sharing in Sydney

Abstract

Under the umbrella of the so-called ‘sharing economy’, unprecedented and new forms of exchange are happening worldwide. The implications of technology-enabled online platforms for urban life – from local housing markets to demand for office space or transport services, have attracted increasing research and policy attention. This thesis focuses on two aspects of this phenomenon by examining how access to online platforms for shared housing and workspaces may increase choices about where and how people live and work. Using the case study of Sydney, which has experienced significant housing market challenges in recent years as well as expanding use of shared housing and workplace platforms, this research asks: What is the take up of digital sharing in domestic and productive space, and to what extent might be these trends impact residential choice and reconfigure the spatial relationship between home and work? This study contributes to the growing literature on the sharing economy in the urban context. By providing and comprehensively analysing empirical evidence, including online data (N=300,000), a survey (N=160), and interviews (N=16) undertaken over three years (2016-2019), this study contributes empirically to understanding the emerging platform enabled home sharing and workspace sharing, in relation to the broader housing market and location of work in Greater Sydney. This thesis finds evidence that the shared housing market is accommodating people with constrained choices by providing lower priced rental housing near expensive job centres; and that the development of shared workspaces plays a role in encouraging people to work near their living locations with better and more affordable working environments. This study also offers methodological strategies for examining and understanding the implications of platform enabled housing and employment practices, as well as advancing theoretical understanding of the sharing economy and informal urbanism.