Rented Housing and Market Rents: A Social Policy Critique

The private rented sector of the British housing market has been in decline since the beginning of the present century; that decline has continued apace since the end of the Second World War. A proposed solution for the stemming of this demise is the removal of present rent controls and the substitution of free market conditions so that rents find their own market levels. This, so it is argued, would enable landlords to obtain a proper return on their housing investments and lead therefore to an increase in supply and an ending to the present disinvestment from this housing sector. This article disputes this thesis. In the first place it is argued that “market rent” is a problematic concept and raises complex issues of distributive justice and social policy — which its advocates ignore. Secondly, it is argued that a free market solution is ahistorical in that it takes no account of the past failure in Britain of privately rented housing; and similarly it ignores the complex web of historical circumstances behind its decline — attributing the decline to the single causal factor of rent control. Thirdly, it is suggested that a market solution is sociologically misconceived because it ignores the characteristics and needs of those social groups dependent upon this sector. Finally, on grounds of practicability it is proposed that a free market in rented housing may be quite inappropriate for the rump of housing stock remaining in the private rented sector; and that, given the current social and economic constraints operating in the housing market as a whole, any revival of this sector is unlikely even with enhanced rental inducements. It is thus concluded that a free market solution is misconceived and would merely serve to impose an ideological straightjacket upon the provision of a basic human need.     

Marginality amidst plenty: Pathways into homelessness for older Australians

In this paper, drawing on in‐depth interviews, we illustrate that despite the significant overall increase in the wealth of older Australians over the last two decades, a sizeable proportion of older Australians (65 and over) are in a vulnerable accommodation situation and many face the possibility of finding themselves homeless. This is especially so for those older Australians who are dependent on government for their income and are living in private rented accommodation. We show that the changing nature of the housing market means that often our informants were not able to find affordable, adequate and secure accommodation. The death of a spouse, rent increases and eviction are common precipitators of a slide into a situation of imminent homelessness. The restructuring of the welfare state and the virtual freeze on the building of social housing means that older private renters who face eviction often have nowhere to turn. Besides not being able to rely on the market or government, many have minimal or no family and social networks.     

Privatising social housing in Taiwan

This article first reviews how the concept of privatisation has been referred to in the current restructuring of the social housing system, especially in the case of the UK. The term 'privatisation' is then examined in greater detail and its wider meaning is discussed. By using the network approach, privatisation in relation to housing can be understood in terms of the changing combinations of agents involved in providing social housing, which gives rise to the commodified impact on the distribution of social housing. By using the privatisation process of social housing in Taiwan as an example, three distinct combinations in terms of providing social housing are identified. With an increasing number of social housing units being provided by the marketised social housing model where private agents control the process of providing social housing, along with more market rules being involved in the provision and the partial removal of means tests in relation to the distribution of social housing, the privatisation of social housing development in Taiwan is having a major impact on equity.     

Everybody needs good neighbours: an evaluation of an intensive project for families facing eviction

This paper presents details of a largely qualitative evaluation of an intensive multi‐method Project, with a residential component, which aims to help families facing eviction to overcome their housing‐related difficulties. The families served by the Project had a host of other problems related to parenting, with child care and protection issues, addictions and mental health difficulties figuring prominently. Just over half the referrals came from the local authority housing services, with nearly all the remainder coming from the social work department. The majority of families made good progress, but in some cases it proved harder to have an impact on parenting than on tenancy‐related matters. Nevertheless, the Project was deemed to have helped some families stay together or be reunited, resulting in substantial financial savings for social work services. Crucial ingredients were good management, stable staff, shared ‘ownership’ by other agencies, a repertoire of challenging methods, and a holistic approach.     

Is overcrowded urban living a factor in fertility decisions? A case study of metropolitan Calabar

Although the effects of housing conditions on human behavior have been studied by urban planners and sociologists, there is relatively little research on the effects of housing density and perceived overcrowding conditions on fertility. This paper uses the data from a survey of metropolitan Calabar, Nigeria, to study the relationship between overcrowding and decisions to limit family size. It was found that a high proportion of families living in overcrowded conditions still desired to have 3 more children. Cultural factors among the study population reveal a fondness for children which is not overridden by a desire for more living space. It is noted that actual urban overcrowding need not lead to declines in fertility, but that cultural factors and socio-pathological conditions may be more important contributors to the reaction of individuals to urban overcrowding.     

Household allocation and spatial distribution in a market under (“soft”) rent control

We analyse whether segregation exists in the rental housing market in Stockholm, Sweden, a market under persistent and all-embracing, yet “soft”, rent control. We use segregation measures for the uncontrolled cooperative housing segment as benchmarks for analysing whether rent control counteracts segregation. We apply the analyses to a rich dataset encompassing some 400,000 households.     

体制分割与中国城镇居民的住房差异

在混合经济形态下,“市场”与“再分配”权力之间的良性制衡的关系尚未形成,相反却在一定程度上对社会不平等的形成表现出层叠效应。对住房不平等的经验分析表明,当前（住房市场化时期）的住房不平等状况很大一部分是由房改前的住房分配过程和住房私有化改革过程导致的,社会成员越是接近体制的核心部门,其住房优势就越突出。这一经验研究发现表明,制度变革的渐进性和路径依赖使得根植于体制分割的社会不平等在尚未充分消退的同时,改革之前导致社会差异形成的体制分割因素依然在一定程度上活跃于当前的社会不平等中,且有可能会随着市场化的推进叠加于源自于市场的社会不平等,甚至经由市场的作用进一步延续并放大。     

Institutional Conflicts in Higher Education

There have been enormous changes in the nation's system of housing [zhilishchnoe khoziaistvo] during the years of Soviet power. Between 1918 and 1988, 4,444 million square meters of total (poleznaia) housing area were put into operation. Between 1980 and 1988 alone, the urban and rural housing stock rose from 3, 573 to 4, 434 million square meters of total area and at the end of 1988 was valued at 499 billion rubles, or 18 percent of all fixed capital in the national economy. Capital expenditures on residential buildings, the level of amenities, and the level of comfort of housing have risen sharply. The system of housing has become a most important component of the social sphere. However, its normal functioning and development are restrained by the system of compensation of state expenditures on the construction, repair, and exploitation of the housing stock that has come into existence here. A retrospective view of changes in the level and structure of housing rent, whose principles and rules of calculation were introduced more than sixty years ago, therefore appears timely here.     

Young People, Housing Benefit and the Risk Society

This paper draws on debates about the risk society to examine the impact of the "single room rent", a restriction in the housing benefit scheme that applies to single people under 25 living in privately rented housing. Drawing on qualitative interviews in six localities in England, the paper examines young people's ability to gain access to and afford privately rented accommodation while receiving housing benefit. It argues that the single room rent restriction has not only cut their housing benefit entitlement but also created more uncertainty for young people. Consequently, it has enhanced rather than ameliorated the risks faced by young people on low incomes in the private rental housing market.     

Linking Housing Changes to Crime

Housing figures prominently in debates about crime in Britain. It has become commonplace to comment on the increasing associations between crime and council housing. This paper explores some of the issues which link housing and crime. It argues that it is important to recognize how the social base and geography of housing have changed and to understand processes which lead to an increasing concentration in council housing of those with least choice in the housing market and fewest resources elsewhere. At the same time there is a danger in overstating the associations between crime and council housing and neglecting other associations with housing, and homelessness. In view of the associations between crime and council housing, considerable effort has been expended on developing management and other responses designed to reduce crime. The general view is that a broad approach is required in such initiatives and the limited research evidence does not suggest that housing management action alone is effective in reducing crime. The association which exists between council housing and crime requires a policy response which relates to why the most deprived sections of the community are increasingly concentrated in parts of the housing market and exposed to increased risks, and one which relates to the pattern of opportunities and choices in the housing system and not just to housing management.     

Welfare through Work: An Audit of Occupational Social Provision at the Turn of the New Century

Occupational welfare has been a relatively neglected area in both theoretical and empirical studies of the welfare state despite its importance to overall levels of social provision. Surprisingly, there has not yet been a comprehensive examination of British occupational social provision, as opposed to non‐wage benefits more generally or specific provision such as pensions, housing or childcare. This neglect can be explained both by the perception that occupational welfare plays a relatively insignificant role in contemporary welfare states and by a general lack of clarity regarding its definition and scope, factors which have added to the difficulties surrounding its conceptualization and measurement. Despite the lack of attention it has received, however, recent pressures have propelled the issue higher up the social policy agenda, increasing the need for a clearer conception of what constitutes occupational social provision and a more comprehensive assessment of its contemporary significance. This paper seeks to shed some light on to these areas by drawing on comparative and UK data in order to carry out an audit of occupational social provision.     

Women,Health and Housing Assistance: Implications in an Emerging Era of Housing Provision

Women and the households that they head are over‐represented among the most economically and socially disadvantaged households in Australia. Recent changes in the provision of housing assistance for low income households in Australia have distinct implications for women and this paper examines the implications of these changes. Shifting the emphasis in housing assistance away from publicly provided and rent‐controlled housing to direct subsidisation of rents for private tenants has important, largely negative, consequences for the health, affordability and security of housing for many women. This situation is made worse given the current housing affordability crisis in Australia; a crisis that extends across all private housing tenures.     

Governance, Forced Migration and Welfare

This paper explores the welfare of forced migrants (i.e. refugees, asylum‐seekers, those with humanitarian leave to remain, and “failed asylum‐seekers/overstayers”) at three linked levels. First, it considers the governance of forced migrants at a supranational (in this case European Union) level. Second, particularly, but not exclusively in the context of the UK, it considers the extent to which the welfare rights of forced migrants in EU member states have been subject to a process of “hollowing out” or “dispersal”. Third, utilizing data from a recently completed qualitative research project, the paper outlines the complex local systems of governance that exist in relation to the housing and social security rights of forced migrants in the UK. The consequences of these networks are highlighted.     

Housing and the Social Exclusion Agenda in England

In the period immediately following its election in 1997 the current Labour government in the UK declared a commitment to ‘combating social exclusion’ to be at the core of the domestic policy agenda. The interpretation of the term ‘social exclusion’ has been the source of extensive debate. This paper focuses on one aspect of the current debate, exploring the relationship between housing and social exclusion, both in theory and in contemporary central government policy in England. I argue that theoretical imprecision is a very real issue, not least because it allows policy makers to refer to rather vague causal mechanisms or social processes to justify actions and interventions. I identify some of the areas that require further exploration and theoretical development if we are to have a rigorous understanding of the concept of social exclusion and its link to housing. Most fundamentally, I suggest that the question of whether the concept of ‘social exclusion’ contributes anything valuable to our ability to understand social disadvantage needs to be addressed directly.     

Lone Motherhood: the Impact on Living Standards of Leaving a Violent Relationship

This paper presents findings from doctoral research which looked at the social support of women leaving domestic violence. In this paper the focus is on one aspect of that study: the living standards of women who have left a violent relationship. An exploratory, area-based study using in-depth interviews and participant observation with twenty white working-class women examinedthis issue. This exploratory study makes visible the links between violence and living standards. Debts incurred during the violent relationship when women had little if any control over finances, rent arrears incurred as a result of leaving, when women were temporarily housed in a refuge or hostel, and increased housing, travel and communication costs all contributed to the women'sexperience of poverty. If findings of previous research are correct, that between 20 and 40 per cent of lone parents (overwhelmingly mothers) experienced domestic violence in their previous relation-ship, then more extensive research in this area is indicated.     

Allocating Homes for People with Intellectual Disability: Needs,Mix and Choice

Allocation of housing and support services for people with intellectual disability is based on three major sets of criteria: an assessment of the applicants' needs; considerations of social mix; and the applicants' own choices. This article examines the philosophical and institutional rationales underlying each of these notions and the tensions arising when seeking to achieve a balance between them. The first section of the article is based on a review of related studies in the UK, the USA and Australia, mainly on allocation policies in mainstream social housing. The second section presents original empirical work carried out in the state of Victoria, Australia, in 2007–08, illustrating some of the implications of a new balance that was created between needs, mix and choice in allocation of housing and support for people with intellectual disability. The article argues that the concepts of needs, mix and choice should be redefined in a way which reflects the interdependencies between them. Further, the article calls for more extensive mutual learning between studies of mainstream social housing and housing for people with intellectual disability.     

Socially excluding housing support to homeless substance misusers: two Swedish case studies of special category housing

This article discusses special category housing for homeless addicts, based on case studies of two different housing programmes and using both qualitative and quantitative data. The staff and residents were interviewed about their experiences of the programmes. Longitudinal data were collected on various indicators of substance misuse and the frequency of contact with the social services at different levels. Our findings show that special category housing has positive direct effects on the housing stability of the residents and their feelings regarding their quality of life, but not on their substance misuse. However, the increased housing stability seems to be more a direct effect of their staying on the programme, rather than a long-term effect. Furthermore, although their quality of life improves, the residents still experience a lack of belonging and feel that their lives lack meaningful content. The choice of special category housing as an intervention model thus seems to perpetuate rather than prevent social exclusion and can possibly be described as an expression of 'institutionalised resignation'.     

Perpetuating the problem: neoliberalism,commonwealth public policy and housing affordability in Australia

This paper argues that the scale of the contemporary housing affordability crisis in Australia is at least partly attributable to the influence of neoliberal ideas over the past three decades. After providing an overview of the nature and scope of the crisis, the process by which housing as a policy problem has been reconceptualised by policy makers and others since the 1970s is examined. This is followed by analysis of the ways in which a number of commonwealth government policies which are ideationally underpinned by neoliberalism have amplified and perpetuated the problem of housing affordability in Australia and, ipso facto, prevented the issue from being addressed. The paper concludes by suggesting that policies which are ostensibly intended to improve housing affordability will continue to founder until the ideational obstacles which are the focus of this paper are recognised, and housing policy is reconceptualised along lines more conducive to the amelioration of the housing affordability problem. The paper seeks to extend the existing literature on housing affordability by explicitly identifying the linkages between neoliberal ideas, commonwealth public policy, and the extant problem of housing affordability in Australia.     

A Sledgehammer to Crack a Nut: Deportation, Detention and Dispersal in Europe

Since the increase in the numbers of asylum‐seekers arriving in Europe in the early 1990s, European countries of asylum have been implementing new and increased controls over entry and making conditions more difficult for asylum‐seekers while they are waiting for a decision on their case. This paper explores the ways in which four European asylum regimes use the deportation, detention and dispersal of asylum‐seekers in an attempt to control and exclude them from national societies and territories. Germany, France, Italy and the UK have different migration histories and have introduced different asylum policies at different times; but all have in common the increasingly draconian response to asylum‐seekers since the 1990s. The paper looks at the stated rationale for introducing and extending dispersal, deportation and detention. EU governments have introduced these measures, arguing that they will deter “fraudulent” asylum claims. While the number of claims has fallen in the last five years to the lowest level since 1988, there is no evidence that this is due to such policies. It is clear, however, that these policies penalize all asylum‐seekers, breach their human rights, damage the receiving societies as a whole, and as such should be abandoned.     

Supportive Housing for Addicted,Incarcerated Homeless Adults

ABSTRACT

Homeless populations often suffer from mental illness, substance abuse, and criminality. Interventions, such as supportive housing, can have positive impacts, although benefits can be limited. This study examined outcomes for clients (N = 102) of a new supportive housing intervention. Use of formal treatment, jail contact, and community stability were compared pre- and post-housing. Jail bookings and residential substance abuse treatment significantly declined post-housing, while clients improved in income level, access to food, and housing stability. Results from official justice and treatment system data suggest that supportive housing can lead to significant changes. Future research is necessary to understand the relationship between client characteristics and outcomes.