Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110-114).

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Hong Kong, 1986.

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Hong Kong, 1981.

Patterns and processes of migration and housing market restructuring in the English countryside have attracted considerable attention over recent years. In contrast to many earlier studies which have failed to examine the way in which these processes are interrelated, this research focuses upon the former local authority sector of the rural housing market in order to explore the key connections between housing market restructuring, migration and rural social change. A realist approach is developed to explore the relationship between households moving through this increasingly important sector of the housing market and wider social and economic structures. This study focuses on the District of South Northamptonshire, an accessible rural district located between principal metropolitan centres where the housing market has been transformed by rapid population growth and high rates of council house sales over recent decades. Analysis is undertaken of the way in which local responses to national housing policy over earlier decades produced a stock of over 4,500 local authority dwellings in the District. Sale of these dwellings under the Right To Buy clauses within the Housing Act (1980) and subsequent resale by tenant-purchasers is a key aspect of the post-1980 restructuring of the housing market and is presenting a unique housing opportunity to increasing numbers of homebuyers in a market characterised by extremely high houseprices and a highly constrained supply of owner-occupied housing. Analysis is based on detailed information relating to 800 households derived from interviews with purchasers of resold dwellings and local authority housing records. The impact of these changes is examined at a variety of spatial scales from the national context, to the impact on individual settlements. Throughout the research findings are related to contemporary debates about rural housing policy and ‘social’ housing provision; social theory and the study of housing, migration and social change in the countryside; and the implications for future related studies

The growth of mega-cities within the developing world has presented extreme challenges to ensuring the fundamental well-being of the general population and providing basic access to social services for all, especially adequate housing. Urban change in the mega-city has been particularly rapid and has involved a complex interaction between multiple actors at multiple levels. Tracing the patterns of urban development within this context is complex and involves incorporating the interactions between civil society, markets, and the state, operating at both micro and macro levels. Of key importance is the manner and degree to which the interaction or isolation between different agents shapes development patterns. This dissertation examines how residential segregation in Latin American cities in general, and Santiago, Chile in particular, is influenced by shifts in policy and planning and how advanced research methods can expose the linkages between social segregation, urban planning structures, and housing production. The primary goal of the research is to examine the nature of socio-spatial segregation in Metropolitan Santiago and the role that urban planning and formal housing provision plays in (re)producing or reducing the separation of different social groups. Santiago presents an ideal case for analyzing complex urban systems as it has developed under a strongly centralized state with formal housing provision processes and mature urban planning programs. While the physical patterns of socio-spatial segregation are broadly similar to many other Latin American cities, unique differences have emerged. Using a mixed-methods approach, the dissertation relates the policy and planning of housing programs, analytic evaluation of segregation patterns, and the simulation of segregation processes over time. The patterns and processes of socio-spatial segregation in Santiago are analyzed in detail via the macro- and micro-level structures of housing provision and urban planning. The central methodological contribution of the research is the employment of exploratory and simulation approaches, whereby formal methods that reinforce or reduce segregation are examined within a multi-level cellular automata model. The results of the dissertation suggest that patterns of segregation in Santiago are spatially and temporally heterogeneous, pointing to a complex relationship between the processes of urban governance, planning, and housing production. / text

This professional report examines the key contextual and organizational factors affecting community development corporations (CDCs) in the development of affordable housing. Using the findings of a systematic case study carried out by William Rohe and Rachel Bratt, I offer a detailed discussion of these factors in the context of a number of case studies, including an extensive discussion of the life cycle of Eastside Community Investments (ECI), a CDC that served the Near Eastside Neighborhood in Indianapolis, Indiana. Following this discussion, I explore a number of policy implications of this case study for the community development sector. The effective production of affordable housing involves a number of key players, including CDCs themselves, their intermediaries, the government, and the community; the active participation and commitment of all of these organizations is crucial to the long-term sustained success of the entire industry. / text

This report documents the growth of renting in Texas colonias, low-income informal settlements along the US-Mexico border. Historically, owner-occupied self-help and self-managed housing has been the norm in these settlements, so scholarly treatment of renting in colonias has been very limited. I begin with a literature review of housing development and housing policy in colonias, before turning, for comparison, to a discussion of renting in the US as well as in informal settlements in the developing world. Chapter 2 draws upon data from the US Census Bureau to describe the nature and extent of the colonia rental market in the six Texas counties with the largest colonia populations: my analysis reveals that renters now make up more than one in five colonia households. I expand on this discussion by examining differences between renter and owner households, paying particular attention to factors that make renters more vulnerable than owners. Chapter 3 employs a variety of regression models to identify the determinants of varying rental rates in colonias. The results suggest that larger, older, and more densely populated colonias have higher rates of renting. In Chapter 4, I utilize a mixed methods approach -- including household surveys, key informant interviews, and intensive case study interviews -- to a) better understand the tenure decisions of colonia renters and to place such decisions within a context of extreme socio-economic vulnerability and b) examine the factors that incentivize a turn toward renting among property owners. I conclude with a discussion of potential policy solutions to ensure that colonia rental accommodation remains affordable, accessible, and of sufficient quality. / text

published_or_final_version / Housing Management / Master / Master of Housing Management

published_or_final_version / Housing Management / Master / Master of Housing Management

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration