A New Model for Housing Finance presents a thought-provoking solution to the housing crisis that follows the division of public and private money on housing costs and benefits. It brings a practical perspective on why housing is unaffordable, and what can be done about it using public and private capital. This book re-examines the foundation of housing finance in the United States with the aim to shift the paradigm from the public and private sectors working in silos, to working together.
Through brief yet rigorous chapters, the book assesses the policy failures of both public and private sectors by drawing attention to the continuing human impacts of this man-made crisis, finally calling for a new model of financing housing through public-private partnerships. The limited impact and false hope of planning interventions, as well as the widespread economic impacts of the global pandemic of 2020, demonstrate the urgent need for change in our approach to housing policy, and this book lays out a path forward. It will be of interest to anyone working in or studying housing, social justice, urban planning, urban studies, and public policy.
Through brief yet rigorous chapters, the book assesses the policy failures of both public and private sectors by drawing attention to the continuing human impacts of this man-made crisis, finally calling for a new model of financing housing through public-private partnerships. The limited impact and false hope of planning interventions, as well as the widespread economic impacts of the global pandemic of 2020, demonstrate the urgent need for change in our approach to housing policy, and this book lays out a path forward. It will be of interest to anyone working in or studying housing, social justice, urban planning, urban studies, and public policy.
"Housing has become increasingly unaffordable for too many Americans. It's steep cost and staggering unaffordability is a key contributor to the new urban crisis that grips many cities in the United States and across the world. Murtaza Baxamusa provides a detailed diagnosis of the problem and outlines a broad framework for a new model housing finance and of housing policy that can lead toward more affordable housing for all."
-Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class and The New Urban Crisis
"Baxamusa has written an insightful and penetrating analysis of one of the major issues facing urban America today: the dire lack of affordable housing and how this issue can be addressed. This is a key book and essential reading for the general public, policymakers, and researchers."
-Leland Saito, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Southern California
"The housing question has returned with a vengeance. One major challenge is how can we develop new housing models for our current period. Murtaza Baxamusa helps us understand some of the key options and challenges. This is an important contribution to what is now a rapidly growing literature."
-Saskia Sassen, Columbia University, author of Expulsions
"Inadequate past public and private housing interventions have left a legacy of inequality and segregation in our cities. This is something that cannot be addressed simply by relaxing zoning and planning regulations. New and more imaginative solutions are required and the new model for housing finance through public-private partnerships proposed by Murtaza Baxamusa in this must-read book represents an important step in the right direction."
-Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Professor of Economic Geography, London School of Economics
"This is a timely book that masterfully combines history, impeccable analysis and original insights to present a bold proposal that can guide housing policy-making for years to come. It is a must-read for students, urban activists, planners, legislators and all those interested in addressing the housing crisis."
-Nico Calavita, Professor Emeritus, Graduate Program in City Planning, San Diego State University, co-author of Inclusionary Housing in International Perspective: Affordable Housing, Social Inclusion and Land Value Recapture
"In this comprehensive and well-written book, Murtaza Baxamusa considers the history and many possible causes for today's crisis of housing affordability. He carefully dismantles the simplistic neoliberal approaches based on more deregulation that have come to dominate much housing economics, showing that only a strategy based on stimulating the right kinds of new public and private housing supplies for the populations that most need it will address the crisis. For this, a broad and innovative new approach to housing finance is required. This is a must-read for scholars of cities and housing everywhere."
- Michael Storper, University of California Los Angeles, author of Keys to the City
-Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class and The New Urban Crisis
"Baxamusa has written an insightful and penetrating analysis of one of the major issues facing urban America today: the dire lack of affordable housing and how this issue can be addressed. This is a key book and essential reading for the general public, policymakers, and researchers."
-Leland Saito, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Southern California
"The housing question has returned with a vengeance. One major challenge is how can we develop new housing models for our current period. Murtaza Baxamusa helps us understand some of the key options and challenges. This is an important contribution to what is now a rapidly growing literature."
-Saskia Sassen, Columbia University, author of Expulsions
"Inadequate past public and private housing interventions have left a legacy of inequality and segregation in our cities. This is something that cannot be addressed simply by relaxing zoning and planning regulations. New and more imaginative solutions are required and the new model for housing finance through public-private partnerships proposed by Murtaza Baxamusa in this must-read book represents an important step in the right direction."
-Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Professor of Economic Geography, London School of Economics
"This is a timely book that masterfully combines history, impeccable analysis and original insights to present a bold proposal that can guide housing policy-making for years to come. It is a must-read for students, urban activists, planners, legislators and all those interested in addressing the housing crisis."
-Nico Calavita, Professor Emeritus, Graduate Program in City Planning, San Diego State University, co-author of Inclusionary Housing in International Perspective: Affordable Housing, Social Inclusion and Land Value Recapture
"In this comprehensive and well-written book, Murtaza Baxamusa considers the history and many possible causes for today's crisis of housing affordability. He carefully dismantles the simplistic neoliberal approaches based on more deregulation that have come to dominate much housing economics, showing that only a strategy based on stimulating the right kinds of new public and private housing supplies for the populations that most need it will address the crisis. For this, a broad and innovative new approach to housing finance is required. This is a must-read for scholars of cities and housing everywhere."
- Michael Storper, University of California Los Angeles, author of Keys to the City