Social implications of housing diversification in urban renewal: A review of recent literature

British and Dutch urban policies have advocated housing diversification and social mix in neighbourhoods subject to urban renewal. Question marks have been placed against the evidence base for the assumed social effects of diversification. This paper provides a review of research into the actual consequences of diversification in Great Britain and the Netherlands. After a brief policy discussion, the paper identifies five issues for which evidence is reviewed: housing quality and area reputation, neighbourhood-based social interactions, residential attitudes towards social mix, the role-model effect, and problem dilution. The review shows ambivalent results that necessitate modest expectations, especially with regard to area reputation, cross-tenure social interaction and residential attitudes. This ambivalence is partly due to unclear policy goals and policy terms as well as vagueness about the relevant spatial level. Moreover, the influence of tenure mix is often superseded by other, more important factors in residential satisfaction, such as lifestyle. The paper also argues that positive role-model effects in neighbourhoods have not yet been adequately studied and therefore remain based on conviction.     

Tenure preference and housing strategy: An exploration of Pakistani experiences

There is an increasing literature on the exclusion of and difficulties faced by minority ethnic communities in a range of areas, of which housing is one of the most important. But there is relatively little good, recent, qualitative material available, which explores the process of decision‐making—including decisions regarding housing—within minority ethnic families. A missing element, therefore, is the study of action by householders and consequently, the realisation (or otherwise) of preferences and the cumulative results of actions in facilitating or restricting choice. The present paper reports on a small‐scale research study of Pakistani housing preferences in Glasgow, whose aim was to develop a life history interviewing technique, using a semi‐structured schedule, focusing on housing preferences, housing moves and experiences. Pakistani households are shown to experience continuing difficulties in funding and organising household moves. There are areas of Glasgow where families feel unsafe and there is a continuing problem of racial harassment. Neither the local authority nor housing associations are generally able to offer appropriate housing. The life history interviewing technique used allows an exploration of how households reached decisions on their housing and on how they indulged in ‘trade‐offs’ between different houses, areas or tenures. Thus our understanding of the role of agency in the development of patterns of housing and individual housing careers is developed.     

Social housing in Latin America: Opportunities for affordability in a region of housing need

In advanced capitalistcountries, the term social housing normallyrefers to social rented housing, and itsprovision can be examined within the context ofthe type of housing welfare regime that hasevolved within the country under consideration.However, in large parts of Latin America –because of minimal affordability and limitedinvestment – social housing is very much amarginalised tenure and – apart from a smallsocial-rented sector – comprises illegalshelter in shantytowns, assisted self-buildhousing, and low-cost owner-occupation. Itwould therefore be unproductive to examinesocial housing in Latin America within thecontext of any of the welfare regimes thatprevail in the developed world.Within the region, large-scale migration intothe major urban areas created a substantial andgrowing housing deficit among the poor in thelatter half of the twentieth century. At first,there was an attempt to satisfy housing needsby the provision of social rented housing, butit was soon recognised that such accommodationwas unaffordable to the majority of the poor,while municipal governments were constrained bybudgetary considerations from increasing oreven maintaining its supply. At the same time,it was realised that informal housing could beupgraded more cost-effectively, and that forits future development the legalisation oftenure was essential; while self-build formalhousing could be constructed through theprocess of community funding. By the 1990s,even the middle-income segment wasdisadvantaged in the housing market asunemployment and interest rates rose and realwages fell, and therefore – through theintroduction of means-tested demand-sidesubsidies – the term social housing wasextended to the conventional owner-occupiedsector.Clearly, welfare regimes in Latin America areat a rudimentary stage in their development,although there is a tendency for governments toembrace neo-liberal housing policies. But at atime of fiscal constraint, it is a cause forconcern that macroeconomic priorities mightmake it more difficult for a large proportionof the population of the region to satisfy itshousing needs.     

Social housing management: Concerns about effectiveness and efficiency in the Netherlands

Recently a discussion flared up in the Netherlands on the effectivenessand efficiency of providers of social housing. Though most people feel that Dutch housing associations are run effectively, there are no data to underpin this conclusion. The government is not clear about the criteria for each housing association: most of the criteria are unquantified and, to some extent, contradictory. Nor is it clear whether every individual housing association has to meet these criteriato the same extent. Many more doubts have been raised about the efficiencyof social housing providers, as housing associations do not act as if theywant to maximize profits.Several suggestions have been put forward to improve efficiency: periodicalexternal visitations, benchmarking, the introduction of a Real Estate Index,and outsourcing a substantial part of the management and development activities. The main conclusion so far is that we are under-informed aboutthe efficiency of housing associations. Some advisory bodies argue that theoverall efficiency of housing associations would improve if they were transferred from the semi-public to the private sector. They claim that thedemand side of the housing market could be strengthened by the introductionof housing vouchers and suggest that housing associations opt out of the public sector.These options fail to take account of the fact that we are insufficiently informed about the efficiency of commercial players on the housing market and the inherent shortcomings of free housing markets when it comes to accessibility, affordability and quality for low-income households, externaleffects and the cherry-picking of tenants by commercial landlords. Hence, weconclude that until more information is available on the true effectivenessand efficiency of housing associations, there are good reasons to continue their current hybrid status, which combines public tasks and market activities.     

The impact of urban renewal on neighborhood housing prices in Taipei: an application of the difference-in-difference method

This study examined the impact of urban renewal delineation time on housing prices in neighborhoods undergoing urban renewal. More specifically, the study used the difference-in-difference method to assess successful housing transactions in Taipei City from 2008 to 2011. According to the empirical results, before the implementation of urban renewal, the average housing price in the areas that later underwent urban renewal (the treatment group) was lower than that in neighborhoods that did not undergo urban renewal (the control group) by 11,180 NTD. After the urban renewal projects were publicly announced, the price per ping of the control group was increased by 148,800 NTD, while the price per ping of the treatment group was increased by 163,680 NTD. This means that the housing prices per ping in the urban renewal areas were increased by 14,880 NTD more than the housing prices per ping in the areas not affected by urban renewal after the urban renewal projects were publicly announced. This increase, then, indicates the value added after implementation of urban renewal delineation time on houses in the neighborhood. Therefore, research into the impact of urban renewal on housing prices should be concerned not only with the neighborhood factors or time factors of urban renewal delineation. Rather, the two types of factors should be considered at the same time.     

Deadlocks and breakthroughs in urban renewal: a network analysis in Amsterdam

Urban renewal in the Netherlands has become a matter of ‘networking’. Housing associations, Dutch social landlords, became financially independent in the 1990s and have a responsibility in urban renewal. It is a joint responsibility in which local authority, social landlord and tenants are dependent on each other. This situation is rather new and needs some getting used to, as the two case studies show. The paper concludes that taking account of the complexity of networks could improve the chances of gaining support for problem definitions and solutions. This would result in agreement about goals and win–win package deals for actors, and ultimately in ‘more’ progress in urban renewal.

The role of the private sector in housing renewal: Lessons from the neighbourhood revitalisation services experiment in England

During the 1980s the British government made a number of attempts to involve the private sector in the administration and financing of housing renewal initiatives in inner city areas. One of the most significant of these was the Neighbourhood Revitalisation Services (NRS) initiative which was based on the Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS) concept developed in the United States. This paper traces the history of housing renewal policy in England leading up to the development of the NRS initiative. It then compares the NHS projects developed in the United States with the English NRS model and discusses the key differences. The performance of both the pilot NRS projects and the expanded programme of government‐funded NRS schemes is then examined in detail with particular emphasis upon the objective of involving private sector organisations in housing renewal. In conclusion the paper discusses the reasons why the NRS initiative failed to meet these objectives including those stemming from the differing housing and financial policy contexts in England and the United States. Ways are also suggested in which attempts to involve the private sector might be more successful in the future.     

Themes and contradictions in housing management: An analysis of bureaucratic discourse

The aim of this paper is to examine the ways in which housing management is socially constructed through analysis of the language and meaning used in one policy document, the Housing Management Standards Manual, produced by the Chartered Institute of Housing. Four recurrent themes are identified in the Manual which illustrate the ways in which language is used to construct the nature of the housing management task and build the professional and organizational structure which provides the framework for relations between housing managers and tenants. An analysis of the document illustrates the impact of contextual factors such as economic change, government policy and the restructuring of public sector management, which are facing housing management in Britain. The research on which this paper is based was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. Lise Saugeres worked as a Research Associate with Bridget Franklin and David Clapham in the Centre for Housing Management and Development at Cardiff University on a two-year project on ‘the social construction of the occupational role of housing management’, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. She has recently obtained her Ph.D. from Manchester and has now been appointed as a Lecturer in Human Geography in Plymouth.     

建材家居市场运行走势浅析

1 2008年运行情况回顾 (一)房地产行业 建材家居市场行业与房地产行业密切相关.国内外实践证明,房地产行业兴旺,建材家居市场就生意兴隆,房地产行业不景气,建材家居市场交易就会萎缩.     

Social needs of the elderly and active aging in public open spaces in urban renewal

Urban renewal districts have a relatively high concentration of elderly people. Open spaces are important for the elderly for enhancing social interaction and active aging. However, planning and design of open spaces tend to stress on the physical and safety needs of the elderly, while social needs are not frequently addressed. This study intends to identify whether the social needs of the elderly regarding the use of public open spaces in urban renewal districts are addressed in the standard planning and design guidelines which newly planned development and districts are often based upon. Eight focus groups were conducted in elderly community centers in two urban renewal districts in Hong Kong. The results indicate that elderly people consider ‘social and physical activities’, ‘community life facilities and services’ and ‘social network’, as well as a ‘clean and pleasant environment’ to be their most important needs. Thus, planners and designers should take into consideration these criteria for enhancing the social well-being of the elderly and active aging in public open spaces in urban renewal. Furthermore, it stresses that urban renewal districts are part of the elderly's past living experiences and established social networks, which is not the case in new developments and areas. As such, the users' actual needs should be elicited rather than perceived by planners and designers.     

Assessment and analysis of housing accessibility: adapting the environmental component of the housing enabler to United States applications

The home environment is a primary context for daily activities, especially among older adults and persons with disabilities. Functional and age-related decline can generate problems in relation to certain environmental features, necessitating modifications or other provisions of support. The determination of appropriate home interventions is best served using a person–environment (P–E) fit approach, which considers both environmental barriers and functional limitations in measuring the magnitude of accessibility problems. In the United States (U.S.), there are few valid and reliable instruments utilizing this approach. This study aimed to adapt the environmental component of the Swedish Housing Enabler (HE) for valid use in the U.S., and furthermore investigate the inter-rater agreement of the instrument. Statistical analyses of fifty pairwise home assessments show the environmental component of the U.S. HE to be sufficiently reliable (κ = 0.410, percentage of agreement = 81 %) for the region of study. A valid and reliable U.S. HE has the potential to inform appropriate housing environment interventions and therefore improve U.S. housing stock, the majority of which is currently considered inaccessible for residents with functional limitations.     

Labour mobility and housing: the impact of housing tenure and housing affordability on labour migration in the Czech Republic

This article examines whether housing tenure and regional differences in housing affordability have an impact on labour mobility. This relationship is important for understanding the sources of structural unemployment and impediments to economic growth. Using two sample surveys from the Czech Republic, this research reveals that at the individual level housing tenure is the most powerful factor determining willingness to change residence for employment reasons. A time-series regression analysis reveals that the impact of housing affordability on observed interregional migration patterns is relatively weak and that this effect is concentrated among the highly educated seeking employment in the capital, Prague. These results demonstrate that housing tenure has a significant impact on labour migration plans in case of unemployment and that the dynamic impact of regional differences in housing affordability on labour mobility is concentrated within the most highly skilled segment of the labour force.     

Social housing investment: Housing policy and finance in the UK and the Netherlands, 1970–1992

Levels of social housing investment in the UK and the Netherlands are considered for the period 1970–1992. The changing housing policies and the developing structures of social housing finance are analysed. These factors have contributed to the decline in social housing construction in the UK and the Netherlands. In particular, the desire of governments in both countries to cut public capital expenditure on housing and increase the role of private, capital in new construction reduced the output during the 1980s. In the UK, a tight monetarist policy was adopted with the aim of keeping inflation down. This can be seen as a major cause of declining levels of public expenditure on housing production. In the Netherlands, a more significant role, compared to the UK, seems to have been played by developments on the housing market, especially the real estate crisis in 1978–1982. In both countries, the outlook for investment in social housing is gloomy Hugo Priemus hold the chair in housing at Delft Unviersity of Technology, and he is managing director of OTB Research Institute for Policy and Technology Jacqueline Smith is research assistant at the School of the Built Environment, De Montfort University, Leicester, (UK). Both cooperate in the Centre for Comparative Housing Research, a joint venture between the School of the Built Environment and OTB.     

节能环保技术在房屋建筑施工中的应用分析

为节约资源、营造绿色低碳的人居环境,对节能环保技术在墙体、屋面、门窗施工中的应用措施进行了详细阐述,并对建筑空间规划以及太阳能的应用作了研究,对促进国内经济、环境、能源的可持续发展具有重要意义。     

Affordability of housing and accessibility of public services: evaluation of housing programs in Beijing

Acute housing poverty and low housing affordability among low-to-medium-income households have become challenges in the pursuit of a harmonious society in China. Promoting housing subsidies and stimulating investment on affordable housing have been at the center of China’s housing policy. This paper analyzes the correlation of affordable housing program in Beijing with household affordability of adequate housing and accessibility to public services, which include elementary and middle schools, hospitals and public transportation. Economic and Comfortable Housing is studied based on unique database of eligible household and affordable housing projects. We find that the program fails to make housing affordable and accessible for eligible households. The implications of housing policy design in the context of the economic and social well-being of targeted households are highlighted in the study.