The last two decades have seen a marked growth in comparative research within the field of housing studies. This reflects the increasing globalisation of housing finance and therefore the interconnectedness of housing markets, growing interest among researchers and policy makers in learning from developments in other countries and the availability of more funding and better comparative data to support their endeavours. Concurrently, comparative housing research has become more sophisticated, as research training has improved, the number of journals publishing this research has increased and researchers have become what one might call moremethodologically aware.However, despite these developments, there is no single volume book that deals with the distinct challenges that arise from comparative housing research, compared to other fields of comparative policy analysis. These challenges relate to spatial fixity of housing, its dual role as a consumption and investment good, and as the "wobbly pillar" of the welfare state, which is delivered using a complex mix of government and market supports.This volume reflects on the significant methodological strides made in the comparative housing research field during this period. The book also considers the considerable challenges that remain if comparative housing research is to match the methodological and theoretical sophistication evident in other comparative social science fields and maps a route for this journey.This book was published as a special issue of the International Journal of Housing Policy.

Comparative Approaches to Informal Housing Around the Globe brings together historians, anthropologists, political scientists, sociologists, urban planners and political activists to break new ground in the globalisation of knowledge about informal housing. Providing both methodological reflections and practical examples, they compare informal settlements, unauthorised occupation of flats, illegal housing construction and political squatting in different regions of the world. Subjects covered include squatter settlements in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, squatting activism in Brazil and Spain, right-wing squatting in Germany, planning laws and informality across countries in the Global North, and squatting in post-Second World War UK and Australia.

This text introduces the reader to the comparative study of housing policy. It looks first at the benefits, limitations and difficulties of the comparative method, as well as the reasons behind governmental involvement in housing and particular policy choices. It then identifies and discusses key themes of value to the analysis of a range of countries in the advanced capitalist world, offering an understanding of national differences and similarities and drawing on examples from, for instance, Europe, the USA, Australia and Japan.

West European Housing Systems in a Comparative Perspective gives an overview of the results of almost 20 years of international comparative housing research, carried out by the author and his colleagues at OTB Research Institute for the Built Environment. The articles give evidence of the transition from descriptive analysis to theoretical exploration and the growing relevance of methodology during these years.The results provide deeper insight into comparative research methodologies and the viability of existing theories as a framework for analyzing differences and similarities in the development of housing systems in West European

Housing law has emerged as a distinct field in both academic legal studies and legal practice. This volume aims to unravel some common threads in the contemporary study of housing law and housing rights. Another objective is to provide a comparative perspective on housing law, the right to housing, and housing policies. The book draws on the work of scholars from various jurisdictions, such as Israel, Portugal, Australia, Switzerland, Indonesia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Consequently, a wide range of prominent issues in housing law are explored, including the concept of home in law, abandoned housing, strata title, the protection against eviction, and the right to choose one's residence. "People and Buildings: Comparative Housing Law" is the second volume in the Studies in Housing Law series that seeks to examine the many facets of housing law from a variety of academic and professional perspectives. (Series: Studies in Housing Law, Vol. 2) [Subject: Civil Law, Public International Law, Comparative Housing Law]