Lecture 13 - Urban Stratification & Housing Market Structure

What emerged in Dutch housing in the 1800s? With which goals?

Cooperative building associations

Goal: quality & affordability

What did the Housing Act in 1901 mean for Dutch housing?

Financing for appproved (private) public housing institutions.

What did the national Dutch government do in the 1900s to stimulate the social housing sector?

Freezing rent / rent protection (to prevent speculation)

What were the solutions to the major housing shortage in the post-war era?

Lots of economic policies like:

State investments in housing

Affordable housing / low rents

Market regulation through subsidies

Government regulation & planning

How did the Nota Huursubsidiebeleid (1974) change the image of housing? Which measures were taken?

Housing was declared as a ‘merit good’

Done through decommodifying rental housing and development

What ideology re-emerged in the 80s? What implications did it have for housing

Liberal ideology

The market was seen as the solution for housing

What did the Nota Volkshuisvesting in the 90s promote? What was its idea on the role of social housing?

It promoted homeownership and new urban renewal, where social rent was seen as a problem rather than a solution

'Social housing should function as a solid and affordable social safety net’

How did the economic crisis in 2010 affect housing?

It put a brake on social housing through different measures

What did the Housing Act in 2015 do for housing? How?

Made housing associations go back to their ‘core task’ —> less commercial activities

More government supervision and tenant organisations

What has re-emerged in housing these last 10 years?

the private rental sector

What is back on the current political agenda regarding housing?

The housing crisis

What are some more recent proposals for the housing market? what group is this aimed at particularly?

rental regulations & protections, particularly aimed at middle class renters

Explain the spatial mismatch hypothesis

A theory that suggests a disconnection between where low-income, often minority, populations live and where suitable job opportunities are located.

Explain which aspects define the emergence of a ‘new urban economy’

Financial services

Real-estate

ICT

Knowledge-intensive & cultural industries

What is the relationship between Global Cities and social polarisation according to Sassen?

Global Cities’ concentration of high-level financial and corporate functions attracts wealth and elite professionals, while also creating a demand for low-wage service labor, leading to social polarisation

Explain Hamnett’s professionalisation thesis as a critique on Sassen’s polarisation thesis

It critiques the idea that cities are only polarizing into rich and poor. Instead, it emphasizes upward class restructuring and a growing professional middle class

How is the idea that ‘social composition is context-dependent ‘a critique on Sassen’s polarisation thesis?

Arguing that urban class structures do not follow a uniform pattern of polarisation: instead, local factors like housing policy, labor markets, and migration shape different outcomes.

What is super-diversity?

A type of diversity that goes beyond traditional categories like ethnicity or nationality by highlighting the multiple variables that shape people’s identities and experiences.