SAH Meeting #2: Get inspired session
11:00-12:00 CET time, Online
The second meeting of the Sustainable and Affordable Housing (SAH) Group was held on February 7 2024.
It was the occasion to know more about the research of Prof. Tuna Taşan-Kok, University of Amsterdam.
Tuna presented the paper: Governing regional affordability: rethinking the production of affordable spaces across the Metropolitan Region of Amsterdam (MRA).
Key findings:
A clear picture of a fragmented municipal-level regulatory landscape of housing and affordability targets. Even within municipalities that designed similar regulatory instruments, the details differ considerably.
The housing investment landscape shows that actors operate at regional level and find it difficult to deal with differences in policies at municipal level. Their research and risk assessment to make investment decisions are made at regional level not municipal.
In other words, the investment landscape and policy landscape do not match. As a result, municipal affordability targets are not met as they have little power operating individually.
Recommendations:
Explore a more regional approach so policies and regulations can shape and stimulate how market actors act across wider geographies.
This can be done by:
> The formalization regional-level guidelines, strategies, and financing that could bolster strategic thinking across partners on a regional scale.
> Urgent need to bolster the understanding of the interconnectivity between real estate and regional scholarship.
> Further explore the notion of regional affordability. This could rely on regional-level data including: investment, development, pricing, transport, etc., to broader spatial interventions that bolster affordability.
> Develop methods to read complex actor landscapes and investors’ locational behaviour, but also produce a new space to govern affordability.
Key Quote:
‘We view regional governance as a promising avenue to strengthen the production of affordable housing as it could enable regulators to have a more comprehensive view on market behaviour to shape metropolitan policies.’ (p. 1877).
References
Tuna Taşan-Kok, Andre Legarza & Sara Özogul (2023) Governing regional affordability: rethinking the production of affordable spaces across the Metropolitan Region
Amsterdam (MRA), Regional Studies, 57:9, 1866-1881, DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2022.2120979
More about the lecturer
Prof. Dr. Tuna Taşan-Kok currently holds the Chair of Urban Governance and Planning and serves as the Research Group Leader of the Urban Planning Group within the Department of Geography, Planning, and International Development Studies at the University of Amsterdam. Her extensive expertise in urban planning, geography, and governance studies is widely acknowledged, as reflected in her substantial publication record. Throughout her career, Prof. Dr. Taşan-Kok has held prestigious positions within international organizations, fostering valuable connections within global research networks. Her research primarily delves into the ever-evolving realm of urban governance, with a particular focus on the dynamics of property-led urban planning. Her objective is to explore innovative approaches to policy-making, urban planning, and urban development from a critical standpoint. In addition to her academic roles, Prof. Dr. Taşan-Kok holds an honorary professorship at UCL Bartlett School of Planning. She is also the visionary founder and chair of UGoveRN (Urban Governance Research Network) and serves as the Chair of the IJURR Foundation. Prof. Dr. Taşan-Kok actively contributes to the editorial boards of several esteemed academic journals, further cementing her impact on the field.
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Find out more about the Sustainable and Affordable Housing Expert Group
Members interested in joining the new Sustainable and Affordable Housing (SAH) Expert Group are invited to contact Viviana Rubbo for more information.
