Housing

Abstract

Housing is one of the most fundamental of human needs, but it is also the focus of sophisticated global finance and the subject of much attention from policymakers in almost every nation. Housing provides shelter but is also imbued with significant cultural meanings regarding home, family, and property. In cities, housing has a distinct geography that often illustrates societal preferences and biases and, in many cities, this results in a high degree of segregation by wealth, ethnicity, and race. The provision of housing is often an important component of national economies and it has long been the subject of significant policy initiatives. Most recently, housing provision is becoming more a function of the market and less the responsibility of national or local governments. This neoliberal turn in housing has had significant impacts on the global economy, and is most clearly seen in the economic crisis of 2007. It has also fundamentally changed the experience of procuring housing for people in many countries. Housing and housing provision also have significant impacts on a wide range of social, political, and environmental issues, which in turn connect the study of housing to larger geographic forces and geographic theories.