Housing, States and Localities

A continual problem in modern societies is how housing of a good standard can be provided for all those who need it. Some countries, and some local areas within any one country, have clearly succeeded better than others. Originally published in 1985, Housing, States and Localities shows how and why success and failure in housing provision come about. It does this using comparative analysis of two countries – Britain and Sweden – and four localities within Britain – Sheffield, rural Norfolk, Crawley and Brighton. Variation in the levels and forms of housing provision are explained by variations in how housing is built, how state policies are formed, and how consumers react to their housing. But the nature of these social relations varies from place to place, and the book also relates differences in housing provision to the different characteristics of these states and localities.

It is very much an argument of the book that success and failure in housing can only be understood in the context of wider social conflicts and social orders. The book also examines the strengths and weaknesses of comparative methodology and establishes a general strategy for urban and regional research – one that recognizes the similar structures and processes encountered in capitalist societies but at the same time can deal with the actual situations specific to particular places at particular times.