The Political Economy of Housing the Urban Poor

This book critically examines the application of the enabling housing strategy in Asia, and assesses why market-driven strategies fail to meet the housing needs of the urban poor. The enabling strategy, rooted in the neoliberal paradigm, criticizes a state-led supply of housing, and argues that the private sector can produce more affordable housing through deregulation, an increased land supply, a robust housing finance sector, and a reliance on the market mechanisms. The book finds that enabling policies increase the supply of middle-income housing, but ignore low-income housing which it considers financially unfeasible or unattractive. As neoliberal policies prioritize urban economic growth, they encourage the demolition of informal settlements to give the land a more productive use, thereby eradicating the only affordable housing for the poor. An effective policy must turn government from enabler to promoter, treating low-income housing as a market niche, shielded from downward raiding and gentrification. The policy must combine housing and income generation, and develop institutions that bridge the gap between the formal sector and the socio-economic conditions of the poor. It is critical that the authorities recognize the poor as legitimate city residents who make significant contributions to the urban economy. A book of vital interest to students, researchers, and academics in urban planning, housing, architecture, development studies, and urban economics, it will also be of interest to policymakers, housing activists of NGOs, and private-sector developers in developing countries.