Housing Policy, Wellbeing and Social Development in Asia

Rebecca Lai Har Chiu, Seong-Kyu Ha

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9781032095523
• eBook ISBN: 9781315460031
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Real Estate
• Index: Business

This book investigates how housing policy changes in Asia since the late 1990s have impacted on housing affordability, security, livability, culture and social development.

Using case study examples from countries/cities including China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, the contributors contextualize housing policy development in terms of both global and local socio-economic and political changes. They then investigate how policy changes have shaped and re-shaped the housing wellbeing of the local people and the social development within these places, which they argue should constitute the core purpose of housing policy.

This book will open up a new dimension for understanding housing and social development in Asia and a new conceptual perspective with which to examine housing which, by nature, is culture-sensitive and people-oriented. It will be of interest to students, scholars and professionals in the areas of housing studies, urban and social development and the public and social policy of Asia.

1 Introduction

Conceptual contexts

Rebecca L. H. Chiu

Preamble

The few book volumes on housing in Asia have discussed mainly the socio-economic and political factors and functions of housing policy. None has comprehensively investigated the impact and causes of housing policy changes on housing wellbeing and social wellbeing, especially those brought about by the sharp economic fluctuations, social trends and rapid urbanization since the late 1990s. The book of Groves, Murie & Watson (2007) aims to investigate the role of housing in welfare states and the emerging importance of asset-based welfare in six Asian countries and compares them generally to those of the U.K. and European countries. They argue that expanding ownership rather than citizens’ right marks a significant departure of the Asian models from the European ones, although the latter has actually reversed the trends to be more akin to the Asian cases. The welfare function of housing policy is undoubtedly an important topic, although it is only one social dimension of housing and social wellbeing. The book of Doling & Ronald (2014) is concerned with how the housing systems in East Asia have contributed to the success of the region, as well as how they are adapting to new, more challenging conditions and how they are likely to fare in the future. Thus, although it covers nine Asian countries, its focus of investigation is to identify and update the East Asian housing model in its varied economic, demographic and developmental contexts. This book, in contrast, addresses the housing wellbeing and social outcomes of the housing policy changes triggered by social and broader transformations in twelve different Asian cultural settings.

While this book contextualizes Asia’s housing policy development in the global and local socio-economic and political changes and the non-housing functions of housing policy, its central theme is how social changes have triggered housing policy changes, which in turn have shaped and re-shaped the housing wellbeing of the local people and the social development of a place. Housing as an element of social development encompasses the security of basic living standards not only in the short-term but also after retirement, a safe living environment and the community development associated with the place of residence. Underpinned by these objectives, this book attempts to open up a new dimension for understanding the relationships between and among housing, social change and social development in Asia and to innovate a new conceptual perspective to understand housing, which, by nature, is culture-sensitive, people-focused and socially-constituted. We thus need to form a conceptual foundation for this study.

Concepts

Although this book contextualizes the housing policy development of Asia in the global and local socio-economic and political changes and the non-housing functions of housing policy, as described above, its central theme is how the different social settings and their changes have influenced housing policy development which subsequently shaped and re-shaped the housing wellbeing of the local people specifically and the social development of a place generally. We believe that improving housing and social wellbeing constitute a core purpose of housing policy. Housing wellbeing encompasses affordability, security and the tangible and intangible aspects of liveability, qualified by the specific housing culture of a locality, for example, acceptance of housing space standards, residential form and the social meaning of housing. Social development related to housing policy pertains to the security of basic living standards not only in the short-term but also in the long-term (thus the welfare nature of housing policy is relevant), a safe living environment, community development in terms of social cohesiveness reflected in the sense of community, identity, neighbourliness and social inclusiveness, as well as the ability of housing to enhance other forms of the wellbeing of its users such as the post-retirement protective function of home ownership (Chiu, 2004; Grzeskowiak, Sirgy, Lee & Claiborne, 2006; Hulchansky, 1995; Seo & Chiu, 2014).

This book interprets housing policy as a form of organized effort designed and orchestrated by the government to make use of public and private resources and both regulatory and other means to solve housing problems to improve housing standards as well as to bring about the wellbeing of a society through the housing endeavours. The policy approaches, or forms of government intervention in the housing sector, are diversified and influenced by political and economic ideology, resources availability, governance modes and specific policy objectives. Accordingly, the extent and nature of government subsidies form a spectrum, spanning a range from in-kind, through regulatory means, to in-cash and hybrid forms. It needs to be acknowledged, nonetheless, that in some places, policy goals and policy tools may not be formulated or available, or even if they are, enforcement may not be forthcoming (Chiu, 2008).

The meaning of social development varies in different contexts and to different people. Midgley (2014) summaries its attributes: it involves processes; it is progressive in nature; it is part of a larger multifaceted process; it is interventionist as it requires human agency to take action; it is productivist as it contributes to economic development; it is universalistic in scope involving the whole community; it is committed to promote social wellbeing. Pawar & Cox (2010) summarize the definitions into three categories. First are definitions that emphasize the need for systematic planning and the inseparable relationship between social and economic development. These definitions take social development as a totality comprising economic, political, social and cultural aspects, and the aim of development is to improve people’s general welfare. Second are definitions that focus on producing structural change as the core element of developing the society and the change involves the re-organization and reorientation of entire economic and social systems. Third are definitions that focus on achieving human potential, fulfilling needs and attaining a satisfactory quality of life. Given the multifaceted nature of housing and its intricate relationships with all sectors in a society, this book adopts all three categories of definitions. The first two categories are pertinent to the diversity of macro social changes and growth that Asian countries are going through, and the third are specific social wellbeing that housing policy intend to produce. Social development in this volume therefore refers to the whole societal contexts and more fundamental structural reforms that precipitate housing policy changes as discussed above and improve the quality of life; more equitable distribution of resources; greater public participation in making decisions on housing affairs; inclusion and empowerment of disadvantaged groups; improvement of the relationships between people and social/economic institutions and those between human needs and social policies and programmes; and release of human potential to eliminate social inequities and problems and to enhance life-sustenance, self-esteem and freedom and to improve relationships between people and their institutions.

The definitions of social wellbeing concepts vary across studies, and each chapter defines the terms in its own context. The following indicative definitions were supplied to the book contributors for reference at the outset. Social cohesion: a state of interactions among members of society characterized by trust, a sense of community and the willingness to participate and help, as well as the actual supportive behaviour (modified from Chiu, 2004 and Chan, To & Chan, 2006). Sense of community: feeling and acknowledgement of being part of a larger, dependable and stable social structure, reflected in emotional attachment, shared identity and frequent social interaction (Chiu, 2004; Unger & Wandersman, 1985). Social capital: a set of productive resources underlying interpersonal trust, trustworthiness, solidarity, reciprocity and engagement in community affairs (Chan et al., 2006). Social inclusion: a situation where there is universal access to resources and decision-making processes and mutual respect for differences and ability to contribute (Cappo, 2002; Oxoby, 2009).

Chapter themes: housing stories of Asia

We organize the chapters according to geographical locations, starting with East Asia, and then South East Asia and South Asia (Figure 1.1).

For the East Asian region, the chapter on China contextualises and interprets the transformation of housing provision regimes in urban China since the abolishment of the urban welfare housing system in 1998. Public rental housing provision in Shanghai is examined to offer insights into the complexity of the societal-economic dynamics in post-reform urban China. The chapter on Hong Kong elucidates the social changes that have given rise to the dominance and limitations of public rental housing and their implications and impacts on the social wellbeing of the lower income groups. This chapter argues that the rental-biased subsidy policy constitutes a security-based welfare policy engendering welfare benefits similar to that offered by an asset-based welfare policy in terms of housing security, affordability and social wellbeing. The Japan chapter focuses on the changing role of housing in Japan’s transitions into a post-growth and super-aged society, exploring the key issues of shrinking housing and mortgage markets, affordability problems in the deflationary economy and housing market and generational fractures associated with housing. The Korea chapter acknowledges the vast improvement in housing supply and government intervention in housing markets, warns of the persistent divisiveness of housing issues to the country and calls for the government’s attention to the social function of housing, especially its implications for the vulnerable groups. The Taiwan chapter points out that housing policy, housing wellbeing and housing justice have dramatically changed in the past several decades, the most significant being re-focusing the goal of housing policy on enabling every citizen to live in an appropriate home. However, the skyrocketing house prices and the low holding costs for property owners have worsened housing inequality and injustice.

Figure 1.1 Twelve Asian countries/cities in the book.

In the South East Asian region, the Singapore chapter points out that as the economy enters into slow growth with inflation in costs of living and housing assets, groups excluded from home ownership appear, even with government subsidies. As home ownership is linked to retirement funding, the government is caught in the dilemma of being unable either to take radical measures to deflate housing prices or to expand rental schemes as they reinforce rising housing inequality. The Malaysia chapter demonstrates that the government plays an important role to ensure adequate access to home ownership by all. The role of the state has evolved from enabling only the bottom 40 per cent income groups to home ownership to include the middle-income households.

In contrast to the East and South East Asian countries and cities, the South Asian countries rely more heavily on the informal sector to solve the housing problems of the lower-income families. The India chapter traces the shifts and continuities in housing policy development in the past decades, contending that India’s housing transformation remains unfinished. The hurdles are little or no penetration of housing finance into the low-income segments, weak institutional structure and resource base of the implementing bodies and governance gaps in the broad (non)coalition of interests across the community spectrum. The Bangladesh chapter argues that the formal housing market in Dhaka fails to provide affordable housing to the middle-income groups, who struggle to maintain a minimum standard of living and to access affordable rental housing. The regulatory and infrastructure development regimes and the institutional environments are found to be non-enabling, constituting the major underlying causes of the severe housing affordability problems faced by the middle-income groups, who are the pillars of the economy. The Vietnam chapter elucidates the huge increase in housing inequality consequent to the housing reform. It highlights the complex state-market relation that leads to the paradox of the state-supported, corporate-led formal sector’s producing a small share of urban housing while the much-suppressed informal sector supplies the majority of urban housing. The Thailand chapter delineates the big divide in housing conditions between the middle- to high-income segment and the low-income segment and calls for attention to this blatant inequality. The slum upgrading scheme advocating participatory democracy is seen as a way to push forward the living standards of the urban poor. Finally, the Indonesia chapter considers the diverse approaches adopted to enable different income groups to acquire home ownership. Housing finance schemes, subsidized housing improvement programs and private housing with government subsidies and support are provided to different income groups. However, the lack of affordable housing in the city centre has increased transportation cost and time and worsened the social wellbeing of vulnerable groups.

Acknowledgement

The chapter described in this chapter was funded by grants from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project no. HKU 742811H).

References

Cappo, D. (2002). Social inclusion initiative: Social inclusion, participation and empowerment. Address to Australian Council of Social Services National Congress, November 28–29, Hobart, Australia.

Chan, J., To, H. P. & Chan, E. (2006). Reconsidering social cohesion: Developing a definition and analytical framework for empirical research. Social Indicators Research, 75(2), 273–302.

Chiu, R. L. H. (2004). Socio-cultural sustainability of housing: A conceptual exploration. Housing Theory and Society, 21(2), 65–76.

Chiu, R. L. H. (2008). Editorial introduction: Urban housing policy issues in re-surging Asia. Urban Policy and Research, 26(3), 245–247.

Doling, J. & Ronald, R. (2014). Housing in East Asia: Socioeconomic and demographic challenges. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Groves, R., Murie, A. & Watson, C. (2007). Housing and the New Welfare State: Perspectives from East Asia and Europe. Ashgate: Aldershot and Burlington.

Grzeskowiak, S., Sirgy, M. J., Lee, D. J. & Claiborne, C. B. (2006). Housing well-being: Developing and validating a measure. Social Indicators Research, 79, 503–541.

Hulchansky, D. (1995). The concept of housing affordability: Six contemporary uses of the housing expenditure-to-income ratio. Housing Studies, 10(4), 471–491.

Midgley, J. (2014). Social development: Theory and practice. 55 City Road: Sage Publications, pp. 9–13.

Oxoby, R. (2009). Understanding social inclusion, social cohesion, and social capital. Journal of Social Economics, 36(12), 1133–1152.

Pawar, M. S. & Cox, D. R. (Eds.) (2010). Social development: Critical themes and perspectives. New York: Routledge.

Seo, B. & Chiu, R. L. H. (2014). Social cohesiveness of disadvantaged communities in urban South Korea: The impact of the physical environment. Housing Studies, 29(3), 407–437.

Unger, D. G. & Wandersman, A. (1985). The importance of neighbors: The social, cognitive and affective components of neighboring. American Journal of Community Psychology, 13(2), 139–169.

2 Housing policy and urban development in China

The public housing perspective

Jie Chen

Introduction

Over the past three decades, China has experienced rapid urbanization, and the urban sector has dominated the national economy. While it is true that the rapid urban growth arises mainly from the productive forces unleashed by China’s economic reforms (OECD, 2012), how the institutional changes of housing regimes affect the mode of urbanization has not received sufficient attention in the literature. This paper puts forward an examination of the interactions between housing regime and urban development in China, with special attention given to the roles of public housing provision in China’s urban development in catering for the needs of the low-income grou...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright page
• Table of Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Notes on contributors
• Preface
• 1 Introduction: conceptual contexts
• 2 Housing policy and urban development in China: the public housing perspective
• 3 The security-based public housing policy of Hong Kong: a social development interpretation
• 4 Housing in Japan’s post-growth society
• 5 Housing policy challenges and social development in Korea
• 6 Changes in housing policy, housing wellbeing and housing justice in Taiwan
• 7 No one left homeless: universal provision of housing in Singapore
• 8 Housing policy in Malaysia: bridging the affordability gap for medium-income households
• 9 The unfinished agenda: national housing programmes and policy shifts in India
• 10 Housing affordability problems of the middle-income groups in Dhaka, Bangladesh: a policy environment analysis
• 11 Vietnam’s post-reform housing policies: social rhetoric, market imperatives and informality
• 12 Housing segmentation and diverging outcomes in housing wellbeing in Bangkok, Thailand
• 13 Housing policy and social development in Indonesia
• 14 Conclusion: Asian housing policies in the social development contexts
• Index