Housing policy: Comparing international comparisons

Land and Housing Policies In Europe and The USA. Graham Hallett (ed). London: Routledge, 1988. pp216. £27.50.

Housing and Social Change in Europe and The USA. Michael Ball, Michael Harloe and Maartje Martens. London: Routledge, 1988. pp222. £30.00.

Polarisation and Social Housing: The British and French Experience. Peter Willmott and Alan Murie. London: Policy Studies Institute, 1988. pp101. £5.95.     

Housing policy in remote Indigenous communities: how politics obstructs good policy

Abstract

When it comes to issues of housing policy, remote Indigenous housing often presents the extreme case. The failures of housing policy are most acute in remote Indigenous Australia, but despite the need to learn from the policy mistakes of the past, there has been little detailed analysis of the policy history. Through documentary and empirical analysis, we show that policies have either failed to be adapted to cultural and geographic contexts or, when they have been culturally responsive, they have lacked attention to the complexities of service delivery. Despite differences in policy settings, the long view is one of the normalization of Indigenous communities, although research points to the need for culturally appropriate arrangements. We argue that rather than politically motivated short-termism, governments need to develop a medium- to long-term approach that approaches policy solutions incrementally, builds capacity within the state and Indigenous communities, and is based on the evidence.     

Housing policy and street homelessness in Britain

Recent government policies to tackle single homelessness have been expressly concerned to reduce the incidence of rough sleeping, particularly in central London. This paper sets the issue of street homelessness in its policy and legislative context; examines available evidence of the rise in street homelessness in Britain; and presents a critical overview of the Single Homelessness Initiative.     

Housing policy socialization and de-commodification in South Korea

South Korea has undergone significant housing system transformations in recent decades involving radical expansions in state housing provision. Growth in social forms of public housing ostensibly contradicts the neoliberal trend toward the privatization of social housing sectors elsewhere in the developed world. This paper examines the nature, features and context of housing policy socialization in South Korea in terms of political and socioeconomic transformations. It addresses why extensions of public rental housing have been developed in different periods and how their role has changed over time. A particular concern is why the ostensible de-commodification or socialization of housing policy has been recently pursued alongside neo-liberalization in other domains and as housing shortage has eased. Important factors have been the legacies of developmentalist strategies that have prioritized economic growth over welfare conditions and increasing political contestation where inequalities in social and housing conditions have come to the fore.     

Housing policy in the UK: the importance of spatial nuance

The UK has been engaged in an ongoing process of constitutional reform since the late 1990s, when devolved administrations were established in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. As devolution has evolved there has been a greater trend towards divergence in housing policy, which calls into question any notion of a ‘UK experience’. Whilst the 2014 Scottish independence referendum again returned constitutional reform high onto the political agenda, there still remain tensions between devolved governments and the UK Government in Westminster, with England increasingly becoming the outlier in policy terms. Informed by ideas of social constructionism, which emphasises the politics of housing, this paper draws on an analysis of policy narratives to highlight the need for greater geographical sensitivity. This requires not only more spatial nuance, but also a recognition that these differences are underpinned by divergent political narratives in different parts of the UK. This emphasis on the politics underpinning policy has relevance internationally in other geographical contexts.     

Housing prices and policy dilemmas: a peculiarly Australian problem?

House price inflation has a long tradition in Australia. By international standards the current housing boom is 'world class'; Australia, along with Britain, heads the OECD league table for house price increases. This article first describes the boom in Australian house prices, distinguishing the differences across geographic and dwelling type sub-markets. The drivers behind these changes are then discussed, ranging from short-term factors like interest rate levels and investor behaviour to longer-term factors like economic growth and demographic change. Institutional influences, notably tax regimes and land-use planning regulations, are also addressed. The article then considers the tendentious but timely question—'is Australia experiencing a speculative housing investment bubble and, if so, will it burst?' The article goes on to consider what the consequences or costs might be, in terms of the broader issues of macroeconomic policy.     

Housing reform in a marketised socialist economy: The case of shanghai

Marketisation and privatization reforms implemented in Shanghai since 1980 have facilitated housing construction and the improvement of housing conditions. The multiplication of construction capital would have been impossible without an effective implementation of the consumption reforms and general improvements in the economy.     

Housing reform in a marketised socialist economy: The case of shanghai

Abstract

Marketisation and privatization reforms implemented in Shanghai since 1980 have facilitated housing construction and the improvement of housing conditions. The multiplication of construction capital would have been impossible without an effective implementation of the consumption reforms and general improvements in the economy.