Housing Enabling Markets to Work

9780821324530

0821324535

Spanish edition of Housing: Enabling Markets to Work. The paper recommends policy reforms for governments and the World Bank help strengthen failing housing markets in developing countries. The reforms recommended in this report would shift government policy away from producing small- scale public housing toward managing the housing sector as a whole. They would help the private and informal sectors provide better housing on a larger and more efficient scale. The new policies would increase the number of countries that benefit from World Bank housing aid--especially low-income countries. Using recent data on 52 countries, the report analyzes market forces that affect housing development. It describes policies that restrict the market and cripple housing supplies by discouraging investment. Readers will learn how impractical housing strategies that raise costs and decrease quality. A new housing role for governments The policy paper provides a seven-point program to help governments improve their housing markets. It addresses key issues that affect housing demand and supply. On the demand side, the paper suggests ways to develop property rights, increase mortgage finance, and target housing subsidies. On the supply side, it shows how to provide a structure for residential land development, how to regulate land and housing development, and how to organize the building industry for maximum productivity. The program includes a detailed framework to help governments manage their housing sectors. This framework brings together public agencies, nongovernmental organizations, community groups, and the private sector. It helps ensure policies and programs that not only benefit the poor but also include them in decisionmaking. Because nations have different housing priorities, the report discusses which program elements would apply to major country groups. These groups include low-income countries, highly indebted middle-income countries, other middle-income nations, and countries with centrally planned or transitional economies. An expanded role for the World Bank and other donors The report examines lessons learned from the Bank's housing policies over the past 20 years. It suggests a country-specific approach to help meet increasing demands for housing assistance. Some recommendations discuss ways in which the Bank could help a government improve its housing market. They explain why Bank aid must switch from single projects to the entire housing sector. The paper shows how the Bank might work with other donors and shift its lending to borrowers who will remove market distortions. It tells why the Bank should support innovative lending models and housing policies, and why the Bank should require governments to collect and analyze housing data more carefully.