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a. People who own houses in our city are usually well-off.

b. People who own a house in our city are usually well-off.

Is there any difference in the meanings of these sentences?

Does (a) imply that we are talking about people who own more than one house?

Does (b) imply that we are talking only about people who own only one house?

Many thanks

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    a) is ambiguous. It may mean a) people who each own a house, or b) people who each own more than one house. b. is clear: it means the same as a).
    – BillJ
    Commented Oct 30, 2023 at 9:35

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Without more I would say they are equivalent, that (b) is setting a floor. "People who own (at least) a house in our city are usually well-off", it isn't implying any limit to what else they own.

(a), on the other hand, is simply making grammatical number match, people and houses both being plural.

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