Colombia: 1973, 1985, 1993
Kenya: 1989, 1999
Mexico: 1970, 1990, 2000
United States: 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990
Vietnam: 1999

Colombia 1973: All households.
Colombia 1985-1993: Occupied [not vacant] dwellings.
Kenya 1989: Not group quarters.
Kenya 1999: All households.
Mexico 1970: All households.
United States 1960-1990: Not group quarters; occupied [not vacant] units.
Vietnam 1999: All households.

OWNERSHP indicates whether the household owned its housing unit. Households that acquired their unit with a mortgage or other lending arrangement were understood to "own" their unit even if they had not yet completed repayment. For those that did not own their housing unit, several options were possible: renting (from various types of owners), subletting, usufruct, and de facto occupation.

OWNERSHP is essentially comparable across all samples, though some provide greater detail than others. The first digit -- indicating whether a unit was owned or rented -- is fully comparable. The second and third digits retain detail not available in all samples.

OWNERSHP is not available for vacant households in any sample.

Some samples indicate whether owned units were owned "free and clear" or were still being paid for. The Kenyan censuses provide different detail about owned units, classifying them into three categories: purchased, constructed, and inherited.

Nearly all the samples provide some information about those who did not own their housing. "Rented" is the main category, with Kenya and Vietnam providing the most detail about the type of owner from whom the unit was rented.

The detail available is different for each year.

The Kenya samples are comparable with each other, but they classify owned housing units differently than other countries, specifying whether they were purchased, constructed, or inherited. The Kenyan censuses also provide more detail about renting than the other censuses do.

The 1970 census made only the basic distinction between owned and not owned housing. The 1990 census identified renters versus other non-owners. The 2000 census distinguished between "totally paid" and "still paying owners."

The U.S. samples distinguish between renters who paid cash rent and those who did not. The 1990 responses also allow users to distinguish between homes "owned free and clear" and those "owned with a mortgage or loan." The 1990 census explicitly placed owned units resting on leased land (for example, mobile trailers in some parks) in the "owned" category.

Vietnam offers more detail about renting than the other samples, aside from Kenya.

OWNERSHP is not available in the 1989 sample. The census question regarding ownership in that year was essentially about the sector of ownership (e.g., government versus private), not about whether a person in the household was the owner of the housing unit.