Jardar Sørvoll

Jardar Sørvoll is a Research Professor at Oslo Metropolitan University's Centre for Welfare and Labour Research (Norwegian Social Research), specializing in Ageing Research and Housing Studies. He holds a PhD in History from the University of Oslo and leads HOUSINGWEL, a Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development-funded research center.

• Research Focus: Housing markets and policy, social policy and welfare state in comparative/historical perspectives, urban equality, and eldercare housing.
• Projects: Enabling Ageing in Place (AgePlace), Activity Friend for Persons with Dementia, Area Review of Housing Solutions for the Elderly, Disadvantaged Housing Market Interventions, International Housing Market Comparisons, Housing Bank's 75th Anniversary Historical Analysis.
• Publications: 32 scientific publications, 26 research reports, and over 333 dissemination activities, focusing on social rented housing, tenure security, and welfare-state housing provision.

His research explores the intersection of housing policy and welfare state dynamics, analyzing how market forces interact with social housing instruments in Norway's unique context as a high-income, hydro-powered homeowner society. He contributes to international comparative studies on Nordic housing regimes versus Central European models.

Recent projects address challenges in Norwegian rental markets, including affordability for low-income tenants and institutional frameworks for municipal housing. He has served as chair of the 2023-2024 Government Policy Commission on the Norwegian Rental Act, producing the influential NOU 2024:19 report.

• Notable Contributions: Analysis of residualized social housing geographies in Norway, comparative studies of social housing trade-offs between insiders/outsiders, historical examination of the Housing Bank's 75-year policy evolution.
• Media Engagement: Regular commentator on housing affordability, rental market pressures, and housing-welfare interlinkages in Norwegian media outlets like Aftenposten, NRK, and Morgenbladet.