Housing policies for sustainable and inclusive cities
How national governments can deliver affordable housing and compact urban development
In a context marked by rapid urbanisation, growing housing demand and the worsening
impacts of climate change, national governments play a vital role in delivering environmentally
sustainable cities with adequate and affordable housing. This paper reviews national
housing policy instruments from around the world, analysing their impacts on compact
urban development and housing affordability. First, the paper proposes a framework
to better understand the housing market in cities by outlining drivers of housing
supply and demand as well as the constitution of the housing market and its segments:
homeowners and renters, single- and multi-family homes, market and below-market price
segments. Next, the paper analyses a range of policy options available to national
governments, which are summarised and evaluated according to their impacts on compactness
and affordability. Last, the paper provides short-, medium- and long-term policy recommendations
to align national housing policies with the goal of delivering more sustainable and
inclusive cities. The paper is one of the first attempts to consider the intersection
of physical urban form and housing affordability from a national policy perspective.
Published on April 15, 2020
In series:OECD Regional Development Working Papersview more titles