Sustainable Access for Starters on the the Amsterdam Housing Market - Centre for Urban Studies, The University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

This report has been commissioned by the Ministry of Interior Affairs in the Netherlands and conducted by four researchers from the Centre for Urban Studies: Richard Ronald, Willem Boterman, Cody Hochstenbach and Marijn Sleurink. The executive summary is available for download from Center for Urban Studies

European Housing Markets, Economics and Finance – After the Crisis (Special issue call for papers from Journal of European Real Estate Research)

Guest editors: Kenneth Gibb (University of Glasgow), Alex Marsh (University of Bristol)

Introduction to the Special Issue
National European housing systems were affected to different degrees by the immediate and longer-term impact of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) after 2007. In some cases the effect was profound. Not only did the GFC bring an end to the benign macroeconomic conditions of the ‘great moderation’ but it exposed the fragility of highly-leveraged mortgage markets. This led to an historic downturn in real housing markets: in new development; in property transactions; and, often, in prices for housing and land. In several countries this market downturn had wider effects on national and regional economies, as well as disadvantaging citizens, communities and opportunities. It is arguably the case that many economists including those working in housing and real estate research either missed or misunderstood the evidence prior to the crash.

In this special issue papers are invited that reflect on this housing market reversal from a national and comparative European perspective (and a regional focus where that is appropriate). The editors are interested in original conceptual, empirical and policy papers. They are not seeking simple factual accounts of the downturn and its impacts on national housing systems – much of this ground has already been covered. Rather, the opportunity is offered for authors to contribute papers that go further and genuinely add to our understanding by exploring the underlying processes and their implications.

Scope
Specifically, the editors would welcome papers addressing the following subjects (or clearly related subjects, by agreement):

• Why were some national housing systems more resilient than others and less affected by the crisis? What are their key features and what lessons can be learned?
• To what extent were the housing economics profession and its models of markets ready and fit for purpose? How well were we able to explain the transmission mechanisms that resulted in serious damage to national housing markets and economies in different parts of Europe after 2007? How well were we predicting the scale of these impacts in advance of the GFC? What lessons can we take from the experience? What lessons have been taken by market actors (including Governments) from the experience?
• How have national housing market policies responded to the crisis and how do those responses relate to macroeconomic policy responses post 2007?
• How has national mortgage market and related policy responded? What impact has that had upon the functioning of the housing market?

Papers are welcome that focus on a single country, undertake comparative research (suitably methodologically grounded), or distinguish contrasting regions within a nation. Papers are also welcome from a non-mainstream economic perspective as well as rigorous conceptual and empirical mainstream contributions.

Submission
The editors would welcome correspondence about potential submissions. In the first instance, please send abstracts to Ken Gibb at ken.gibb@glasgow.ac.uk.

All papers will be double blind peer reviewed and read by the Editors. Papers should be submitted in the normal way to JERER, but in order for papers to be considered for this Special Issue authors must conform to the following timetable.
Key dates:

• Deadline for submission of abstracts and editorial approval to submit – by 31st October 2013
• Deadline for submission of draft papers – 31st January 2014 (this is a hard and non-moving deadline)
• Review of draft papers returned to authors by 31st March 2014
• Deadline for revised & finalized papers by 30th June 2014 (this is another hard non-moving deadline)

Please note that, as there are size restrictions on any one issue of JERER, papers maybe accepted for publication by this route but might not be accepted for the special issue. Such papers will be published in the first available spaces of the journal in a standard issue thereafter.
Please contact the editors if you would like to discuss any aspect of this special issue, including the possible submission of a paper and whether or not it would be in scope. Details are also available from Emerald
 

New ESRC project looking at Travel to School and Local Housing Markets - opportunity for 18 month post-doc position

Ed Ferrari (Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Sheffield) has been successful in securing funding from the ESRC's Secondary Data Analysis Initiative for a study of the links between travel to school, local housing markets, and educational choice.  There is a well known tension between policies aimed at enhancing school choice and those aimed at reducing school travel distances and promoting healthy commuting choices.  The local housing market can both act as an important mediator of this tension and be shaped by education policy and choices.  This study will develop a set of spatial multi level models exploring these interactions and developing policy recommendations for local planners and education officials.  The study will use data from the National Pupil Database and the Land Registry as well as previous ESRC investments in the British Household Panel Survey, Understanding Society, and Digimap.  The 18 month study will commence in April 2013.  An opening for a 18 month post doctoral research associate, with a closing date on 7 February, is currently being advertised at www.sheffield.ac.uk/jobs (ref UOS005862) and at jobs.ac.uk.  For more information, please contact Ed Ferrari at e.t.ferrari@sheffield.ac.uk.

News from CCHPR, new publications

What progress has been made on creating a more sustainable housing market?

Volatility has plagued the UK housing market for four decades. The JRF Housing Market Taskforce identified ways to create a more sustainable housing market, suggesting credible long-term policy options to avoid extreme house price fluctuation and protect vulnerable households from its effects. One year on, our new paper follows up this work, assessing the Government’s progress in tackling volatility.

For more information and to download the report please click here

The implications of the 2008-based household projections for estimates of housing need

Alan Holmans’ new article has now been published in the September issue of the TCPA journal.

The 2008-based household projections show an increased number of households because of the rise in population caused by continuing high inward migration. In terms of housing need, the new projections imply a 10% increase in the proportion needing social housing or private renting with the aid of housing benefit. This largely results from increasing numbers of lone parents.

For further details click here 

 

Analysis of the private rented sector in Richmond upon Thames and surrounding areas

Richmond Council, together with Richmond Housing Partnership, commissioned a short piece of work to help form the evidence base of their tenancy strategy. This research examined the operation of the private rented sector in Richmond and nearby with a particular focus on the availability of housing for low income groups.


Clickhere for more details and to download the report

RC43 Conference 2013 - ‘At home in the housing market’, 10 - 12 July 2013, Centre for Urban Studies, University of Amsterdam.

Conference theme:
In contemporary societies, the meaning and function of the built environment has been transformed by the intensification and growing volatility of capital accumulation in housing and real estate. With sustained housing commodification in context of declining economic stability, most households have become ever more sensitive to the status of their homes as exchange goods and consider their respective housing market positions as central to their chances of security or future prosperity. This conference explores the dynamic interaction between homes and (housing) markets over time and across different socio-economic contexts. There are various ways of thinking about the idea of ‘being at home’ in this regard. First are the connections between homes as places, spaces and objects of family and social life, as well as housing commodities that circulate on, and are subject to, fickle and dispassionate markets. Second is the significance of the shift from pre- to post-crisis conditions and how the housing market has been experienced in different cities, regions and countries. In Europe and North America, for example, there is a distinction that not only marks out a fundamental economic reorientation but also cultural, socio-political and even family and generational transitions. In Latin America and East Asia by contrast, housing has not been so interwoven with recent global economic crises, albeit with housing commodification still deeply embedded with social change.

This conference incorporates and Young / New Researchers pre-conference

For further details go to RC 43 Conference 2013

Institute for Housing, Urban and Real Estate Research (IHURER), Heriot-Watt University

Placed-based policies in deprived neighbourhoods
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission published rapid evidence review led by Dr Peter Matthews Gina Netto and Kirsten Besemer. The report – 'Hard to Reach' or 'Easy to Ignore' - analyses what impact place-based policies to tackle socio-economic deprivation might have on the equalities of groups protected under UK legislation.
The analysis brought together a wide range of literature along with new analysis of 2001 Scottish Census data and the Scottish Health Survey to enable us to better understand the intersection between the most deprived neighbourhoods in Scotland and the spatial distribution of equalities groups in Scotland. One of the key findings is that place-based policies are often unintentionally blind to equalities issues, or protected equalities groups such as the disabled or lone parents, are treated as problematic.

Mark Stephens and Peter Williams Tackling Housing Market Volatility in the UK: a progress report” (Joseph Rowntree Foundation)
In May 2011 the JRF’s Housing Market Taskforce report outlined measures the Government should take to limit the extent and consequences of housing market volatility. This report provides a review on progress since then. It concludes that in some ways we are moving away from the goal, and that the Government continues to be too timid concerning actions that are needed to bring about greater housing market stability. The authors highlight some priorities.

Other housing market publications
C. Jones, M Coombes and C Wong (2012) “A System of National Tiered Housing Market Areas and Spatial Planning”, Environment and Planning B, 39, 518-532 (2012).
C. Jones,  M Coombes, N Dunse, D Watkins and C Wymer (2012) “Tiered Housing Markets and their Relationship to Labour Market Areas”, Urban Studies, 49, 12, 2633-2650 (2012).
Colin Jones, Michael White and Neil Dunse (eds) (2012) Challenges of the Housing Economy: An International Perspective, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford.

Conferences
Colin Jones gave a keynote lecture at the 2012 European Real Estate Society conference entitled “An International Perspective on the Housing Market Crisis: Causes and Consequences”
Mark Stephens presented a paper written with Marja Elsinga and Thomas Knor Seedow on housing privatization in England, the Netherlands and Germany at the Second International Symposium on “Public Housing Futures”, August 29-30, hosted by Fudan University, Shanghai
Chris Leishman and Mark Stephens participated in the New School Housing Conference in New York, 123-14 September. Chris presented a paper on “Aggregate Housing Supply: are the microeconomics of behaviour of housing developers important?.” Mark was a panel member for a debate on “Post-crisis prospects for affordable rental housing in a time of fiscal austerity"

News from Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research

New publication - 
Measuring the affordability of housing association rents in England: a dual approach
A new journal article has been published by Dr Connie Tang in the latest issue of the International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis. The purpose of this article is to compare relative levels of rental affordability across the English housing association sector, using two methods, rent-to-income ratio and residual income standards (poverty-line and budget standard). The rent-to-income ratio analysis identified that housing association rents were generally affordable. However, the residual income analyses using two different minimum acceptable standards suggested some scepticism in this regard. In particular, both analyses confirmed the affordability problem in London where nearly half of existing housing association tenants had disposable household incomes that were well below the poverty-line as well as the largest rent-to-income ratio. Both analyses also confirmed that lone parents were more likely than average households to have an affordability problem.

The article is published in the International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis, Vol. 5, Issue: 3, pp.218 - 234. You can access the article online by this link: Measuring the affordability of housing association rents in England: a duel approach

New projects

Welfare reform
CCHPR is working with Ipsos Mori on a major new study for the National Housing Foundation on the impact of welfare reform. The work, which will report in 2014 aims to focus particularly on the impact of welfare reform for the housing association sector and its tenants. It will monitor the impact of reforms as they come into operation next year, including the cuts to housing benefit for under-occupiers of working age, and the changes to the method of payment brought in under Universal Credit.

Maximising the performance of the new Section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy Planning Framework with Local Authorities: Developing a Planning Gain Model
The Centre is currently developing a simple model to estimate the impact of charging different CIL and S106 rates on the economic viability of development. The model has huge potential to assist local authorities in modelling the impact of different CIL and S106 rates on the economic viability of development across their area. We propose a project to further develop the model for local authority use. We will work with a sample of local authorities to test and refine the model with a view to eventually making it publicly available for use by local authorities to assist in developing their new CIL and S106 charging frameworks. This will transfer our academic knowledge and expertise into a tool that can be used by local authorities in policy and practice.
Evaluation of lighting interventions
CCHPR is currently starting three separate small evaluations of lighting interventions in housing settings for the Thomas Pocklington Trust. The impact on health wellbeing and reduction in falls will be examined.

Analysis of the PRS in Richmond and surrounding areas
Richmond Council, together with Richmond Housing Partnership, are currently jointly commissioning research in order form the evidence base of their tenancy strategy. This work will help supplement this evidence base by improving understanding of the private rented sector in and nearby to Richmond with a particular focus on the availability of housing for low income groups.

Developing best practice in social care and support for adults with concurrent sight loss and dementia within different housing settings
This project, funded by the National Institute for Health Research seeks to develop best practice in social care and support for people with dementia and sight loss in a range of housing settings. The research is led by York University and CCHPR will lead the element of the study that looks at the costs of care in different settings.

Channel Islands housing markets
An overview of housing markets and their economic context in the Channel Islands, based upon secondary data, has been commissioned by One Savings Bank.

Conference papers
Dr Gemma Burgess, Sarah Monk and Christine Whitehead all presented papers at the European Network for Housing Researchers conference in June. Their presentations were:

The role of regulation in the private rented sector: a comparative study (by Christine Whitehead, Sarah Monk, Sanna Markkanen, Kathleen Scanlon and Connie Tang) conducted case studies of eleven European countries to clarify how regulation had changed over the last thirty years and what impact this has had on the scale of private rental provision.

The role of the planning system in delivering housing choice to older Londoners (Sarah Monk and Gemma Burgess) draws on recent research into the role of the planning system in delivering specialist older people’s housing to explore the barriers to increased delivery and make recommendations for change.

Housing an Ageing Population: Housing Options and the Value of Information and Advice to Older People in England (Gemma Burgess) drew on ongoing work evaluating advice services for older people in England.

NEWS FROM INSTITUTE FOR HOUSING, URBAN AND REAL ESTATE RESEARCH (IHURER)

IHURER has recently made two new senior appointments: Mark Stephens and Chris Leishman. Mark Stephens has been appointed Professor of Public Policy. Specialising in housing market volatility, housing, welfare states and poverty, and comparative analysis, he will remain an Editor of Urban Studies. Mark’s recent activities included a visit to the Department of Urban Planning and Design, Hong Kong University where he gave a public lecture on “Housing Poverty and Income Poverty”. As Academic Adviser to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s Housing Market Taskforce, he was a speaker at the launch of the Cecodhas campaign “For economic growth and stability: affordable housing wanted!”, alongside Andor Laszlo, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. Mark is currently working with Kenneth Gibb (Glasgow) and Duncan Maclennan (St Andrews) on a project relating to finance for affordable housing for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Professor Chris Leishman has also moved from the University of Glasgow to IHURER. In his role as Professor of Housing Economics. Chris intends to build on his recent work modelling macro, regional and local housing markets, and developing ‘client friendly’ simulation models. He also intends to launch a housing market forecasting unit in the near future, aimed primarily at the expansion of good quality housing statistics, forecasts and intelligence to counter the reduction in research and statistical reporting capacity in the housing sector in recent years. He will continue in his role as joint Managing Editor of Housing Studies.

Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick has recently returned from a three week visit to Australia, where she made research presentations to academic and policy audiences in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. She attended the AHURI/RMIT University National Homelessness Research Conference (19-20th April), where she gave papers on ‘Human Rights, Legal Rights and Homelessness’, and on ‘The Homelessness Consequences of Economic Recession and Policy Reform in England’ (the latter jointly with Hal Pawson). Suzanne also participated in the closing panel discussion at the conference, alongside Professor Dennis Culhane, from the University of Pennsylvania, and a range of leading figures in homelessness research in Australia. Other papers given by Professor Fitzpatrick during her visit included ‘Homelessness as Multiple Exclusion: Implications for Prevention and Service Delivery’ (University of Queensland/Queensland Government), ‘Housing First in Europe’ (University of New South Wales/Mercy Foundation), and ‘Preventing and Addressing Homelessness: A European Perspective’ (Homelessness New South Wales Providers Forum).

The LankellyChase Foundation has appointed IHURER to compile the UK’s first profile of severe and multiple disadvantage. This project focuses on people at the very sharpest end of interlocking disadvantages – such as homelessness, drug and alcohol misuse, poor mental health, and involvement with the criminal justice system. Coordinated and well-targeted responses to this group require a robust evidence base, however data underpinning social policy for those on the extreme margins has tended to be patchy and fragmented to date. By bringing together all of the available data into an integrated profile, the project seeks to provide policy makers, practitioners and other key audiences with a user-friendly resource that will allow them to understand the scale and nature of the issues facing the UK’s most marginalised people. They will also be able to identify key trends and concerns as they emerge, and to develop strategies to address these concerns. This 12 month project commenced on 1 June 2012, and is led by Professors Suzanne Fitzpatrick and Glen Bramley.

The first edition of the national ‘Homelessness Monitor’ for England, funded by Crisis and undertaken by IHURER and University of York, was published  in autumn last year, attracting considerable press attention in the UK. Crisis have now extended this project to cover Wales and Scotland, and all three 2012 Homelessness Monitors (and a Great Britain summary) will be published in autumn this year.

Dr Sarah Johnsen and Prof Suzanne Fitzpatrick, together with Anwen Jones (York), have recently begun an evaluation of ‘reconnections’ schemes for rough sleepers in England. The study is funded by Crisis and will explore both the effectiveness and ethicality of reconnection approaches.

Professors Hal Pawson (IHURER) and Steve Wilcox (York) continue to work on the UK Housing Review. The 2012 edition is already available, while the 2012 mid-year briefing will shortly be available on: http://www.york.ac.uk/res/ukhr/ukhr1112/index.htm and http://www.york.ac.uk/res/ukhr/ukhr1112/briefingpaper2011.htm

Professor Colin Jones and Dr Neil Dunse are editors, along with Michael White (Nottingham Trent) of "Challenges of the Housing Economy: An International Perspective" (Wiley-Blackwell, April 2012).  It features chapters on the housing market experiences of Australia, China, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Spain, the UK and USA looking at long term trends and issues, and the impact and responses to the international financial crisis.  These chapters are written by academics from the respective countries.  There are also chapters that examine the international evolution of social housing and the private rented sector.

A number of PhD opportunities are being offered in Heriot-Watt University’s School of the Built Environment (closing date 31 July). For details see:  http://www.sbe.hw.ac.uk/research/postgraduate/opportunities/july-sbe-research-scholarships.htm

News from BSHF

BSHF has published a report tackling the issue of housing undersupply in the UK. The shortage of housing impacts on the economy, society as a whole, as well as individual households.

There is a range of different causes of this undersupply, which have been exacerbated by the current financial constraints. The government has made a high level commitment to addressing these issues, and are introducing a range of policy measures with the aim of increasing supply. However, the report argues that there is a lack of coherence in these policies and that a strategic approach is needed to tackle the scale of the housing crisis. Four strategic objectives are proposed covering the full scope of the problem from land supply to finance.

The report is available to order or for free download from the BSHF website:
http://www.bshf.org/published-information/publication.cfm?lang=00&thePubID=25E04994-15C5-F4C0-99170AE24B5B0A84

British Academy small grant: travel to school and housing markets

Ed Ferrari recently won a British Academy small grant to undertake a short project looking at the relationship between travel to school and housing markets in the UK and US. The project aims to collect some baseline comparative microdata from cities in the UK and US and undertake some preliminary analysis in collaboration with Professor Marc Schlossberg of the University of Oregon. For further details contact e.t.ferrari@sheffield.ac.uk

News from the Building and Social Housing Federation (BSHF)

Energy efficiency study

BSHF is been supporting a longitudinal study by Metropolitan Housing Partnership on the impact of energy efficiency features in new and retrofitted homes. The first report from the three year study, called ‘Homes of Our Times’, has recently been published and is available for download from MHP: Homes of Our Times The report suggests that there is a worrying gap between designed performance and the actual performance that customers receive. Up to half of residents were unaware of the low and zero carbon technologies (LZCT) in their homes. This initial report assesses whether residents were achieving intended savings, emitting less carbon and using less energy as a result of their greener homes. Evidence presented in the report demonstrates the pressing need for better and clearer engagement and communication to raise awareness of how the homes and technologies work and what residents need to do in order to benefit from them both in terms of energy and financial savings.

Regeneration Inquiry

BSHF’s submission to the Communities and Local Government Select Committee’s inquiry on regeneration drew on academic research into the Housing Market Pathfinder programme. The work, carried out by former BSHF CASE student, Andrea Armstrong, highlighted the challenges that future regeneration efforts will face, particularly in areas that have experienced repeated attempts at regeneration policies and strategies over a period of decades. BSHF Evidence to Select Committee on Regeneration

Welfare Reform – Public Bill Committee

Continuing the work started by its Consultation at Windsor Castle on the subject of Support with Housing Costs, in June 2010, BSHF has submitted evidence to the Public Bill Committee for the Welfare Reform Bill. The evidence drew attention to the fact that the specification of the housing component of Universal Credit (clause 11) is very broadly drawn, potentially granting substantial powers to ministers to change how it is calculated without further parliamentary scrutiny. It also highlighted the need for the design of Universal Credit to be coordinated with wider housing policy (such as the introduction of Affordable Rent), to create a coherent approach. Public Bill Committee evidence

New report on local housing market volatility

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation recently published the report Local Housing Market Volatility, which was written by Ed Ferrari and Alasdair Rae (Sheffield University). The report, which was written as as submission to the JRF's Housing Markets Taskforce, finds that the last housing market boom - which ended with the credit crunch - was one of the longest in recent history and exacerbated regional and local inequalities in the housing market. The gaps between different parts of the country grew wider in housing market terms. The report suggests that policymakers need to renew their attention to the demand side of the housing market - and regional differentials in the economy in particular. It also suggests that these regional differentials and patterns of population mobility within the country serve to reinforce structural patterns of inequality in the housing market.

The full report and a four page summary 'Findings' can be downloaded from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's website at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/local-housing-market-volatility