The institutional framework for housing policy in Japan was started in the immediate postwar period by the Government Housing Loan Corporation, publicly-operated housings, and the Japan Housing Corporation. Japan achieved its goal of “one house per household” in 1973, two decades after the postwar housing shortages. In recent years, rapid aging and a falling birthrate have prompted a major shift in the focus of housing policy from ensuring an adequate quantity of housing to improving the overall quality of residential life. “The Basic Act for Housing” in 2006 provides a road map for the achievement of enhanced residential living standards. Measures are now being implemented under the Basic Program for Housing from FY2016 to FY2025.

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Factors of recent housing distress are not only economic factors but also factors of congestion, so it is necessary to consider various countermeasures against diversifying poverty factors. It is important to examine the scope and method of safety net policies for the community extensively. To functionate the safety net of these markets, it is important to recognize the importance of the long- term operation system of the rental housing and to share the social value of the rental housing in the area by community residents, the industry, and the administration. The rental housing must be a business that is evaluated for sociality and it is necessary to realize a stable living condition built up by both rental housing and market with the safety net.

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In this paper, I present the making technique of housing safety net plan by the cooperation of public housing and private rental housing. Moreover, I point out the importance of cooperation system of mutually related current plans about housing safety net such as basic housing plan and preventive maintenance plan of public housing.

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The article discusses the linkage between urban planning system and housing policy in Japan. As one can imagine easily, there has been close linkages between them, like housing and urban infrastructure development in the era of urbanization, promotion of housing supply during the term of extreme rise of land price in metropolitan centers or utilization of existing real estate stocks like vacant houses in present days. However, there seems to be less linkage in some fields on which close collaboration is supposed to be essential. While densification of built-up areas, which is now often called as “compact city policy”, has been one of the most important issues in the field of urban planning, housing theories policies doesn’t show enough criteria to evaluate better housing conditions following to the transition of people’s preferences. On the other hand, urban planning system hasn’t shown interest to so-called housing poor, which seem to become varied in recent decade. To strengthen the linkage between them, both system and policy should share the recognition of contemporary problems and desired direction, before considering practical ways of collaboration between them.

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This paper describes the residential population dynamics, the state of current housing supply and existing housing, the policy for newlyweds and families with children, the public housing and private housing, the redevelopment of areas packed with old residences, the measure of vacant houses, the attractive urban design and providing housing information in Osaka city.

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Through the middle of year 2018 to the beginning of 2019, there have been dramatic changes of housing policy based on the housing strategy or plan, as a political statement or a commitment, by new or continuing administration in the US, the UK and Germany. The background could be commonly illustrated by the pressure of national voices due to social and economic problems derived by population and household growth through historical increase of immigrants and recent sharp increase of refugees. But there are also some temperature differences naturally among these 3 countries as the housing policy is regarded as an independent local policy made in consideration of the culture of people’s living thereof. This article does not intend to argue on the Populism in relation to increasing immigrants and/or refugees, but to present the latest situation of housing policy changes in each country, and to reconsider “What is a housing policy and for whom?” Because it is likely that Japan would encounter the similar situation within a visible term, we have to prepare for it.

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This study examines the transition in German housing policies with regard to the emergence of small housing projects that cater to specific regional contexts and demands. Social housing scheme has changed dramatically over the past two decades in Germany. Originally designed as a state-subsidized housing program 　for a broad spectrum of society, it has now shifted to providing residualized support on a much smaller scale to those who cannot afford to purchase a house in the housing market. As a result of institutional reform, social housing has further decentralized. The federal government has withdrawn financial support, and devolved it to the states in 2006. Each state has instituted its own program, which responds to specific regional contexts and demands. On the other hand, housing allowances offered by the government consider the economic ability of a household to access adequate housing. Their individual transfer effect is highly evaluated as a purposely designed system. However, the Hartz IV Reforms of 2005 have caused problems by making housing benefit an alternative to housing allowances. Recently, in urban regions with high growth, small but innovative housing projects have implemented regional policies and successfully moved beyond pilot phases, stimulating a new perspective on housing policies.

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This paper will summarise and examine the impacts of social security reform on British housing policy. Social security system has played an important role in supporting those with low income to secure their dwellings as well as stimulating housing market. However, British social security system has become more complex with several tax credit systems, which was expected to increase work incentives for those in working ages, introduced since the 1990s. It has also become serious issues for the government to control social expenditures since the financial crisis since the 2010s. The conservative government has conducted social security reform in which several cash benefits would be integrated to a single cash benefit, Universal Credit. The reform has faced many technical difficulties and full implementation has been delayed, but it would be completed within several years and current Housing Benefit would be replaced by new Universal Credit. The prospects of the reform are still unclear, although the quality of dwellings and the level of benefits would be a matter of debate continuously.

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In this paper, I trace the evolution of US housing policy toward greater hybridity. Drawing from a case study of the Atlanta Housing Authority, we showcase two housing programs, HOPE VI and Moving to Work, in order to highlight current innovations in the provision of housing for low-income populations and the entrenched hybridity that is evident.

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This article mainly explains the transformations underlying the gradual privatisation and deregulation of Swedish housing policy after the mid of 1970’s. The housing has been one of the important component to shape the Swedih welfare state after 1930’s. The 2nd leader of Swedish Social Democratic party, named Per Albin Hanson showed policy agenda named Folkhem (the ‘people’s home’) in 1928. This agenda promoted to establish welfare state, operating simultaneously with regulated housing policy. Between Folkhem era and 1974, huge amount of housing were provided in the suburbs of middle and big size of cities in Sweden with regulating housing provison. In the first of 1990’s Swedish housing policy gradually shifted to privatisation, because of influence of neoliberalism and accedence of EU. Currnetly Swedish housing policy functions to complement private housing markets

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This article argues about the direction of recent French housing policies focusing on the social rental housing sector. In France, the supply of social rental has been promoted strongly by successive central governments since from 2005 in order to 1) defend housing right by providing an adequate dwelling to people with great difficulties, and also to 2) realize ‘social mix’ through assuring housing diversity everywhere in urban districts corresponding to the municipal boundaries. In this process, the positioning, activities and interrelationships of each stakeholders, especially those of social landlords and local governments have been transformed. The current French administration requires more efforts to them through the reduction of housing allowance and strengthening the duties applied to the urban municipalities which don’t have enough social housing. The recent direction poses questions on the functions of social rental housing as well as the effectiveness of the measures introduced by the central government to assure housing for people with great difficulties.

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The housing policy of Korea, based on the 'Framework Act on Residence (2015)', has a residential road map (2017) to promote housing welfare with the 10-year comprehensive plan (2013~2022). Housing welfare comprises various programs; special supply of public rental housing for the young and newly married couples with financial support, expansion of social housing supply by the third sector, making the housing disadvantaged like the elderly and the disabled to live in community care housings rather than the facilities, enlarging housing services to support community activities and living, and expansion of housing welfare centers to strengthen the housing welfare delivery system.

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Income disparity is widening globally under neoliberalism. In most of major Asian cities, as housing and real estate prices have been rising faster than income, the housing gap between social classes and generations has been expanding. Under such circumstances, Singapore has maintained affordable public housing policy with strong government commitment, raised its quality level. This paper aims at reviewing characteristics of the public housing policy of Singapore and its evolution from viewpoints of (1) presence of public housing in Singapore, (2) affordable housing policies, (3) upgrading and renewal strategies of Housing & Development Board (HDB) towns and estates, (4) rapid ageing society and policy responses on public housing, and sustainable smart town development. Singapore's public housing policy is a device for social stability in the neoliberal economic society. The sale of subsidized public housing with a variety of housing grants based on the ability to pay also functions as a system of redistribution of wealth. Taking advantage of the quantitative base that public housing accounts for nearly 70% of the housing stock and 80% of the citizens and permanent residents live in the public housing, the government effectively makes policies on sustainable urban management and creating elderly people friendly society. All these contribute enhance the quality of life of Singapore

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The purpose of this research is to practice the two-step renovation experiment of public rental dwelling unit, UR Freestyle House and verify the effects and the problems. As a result, we got a good impression about the two-step renovation process from the hearing survey of young people. In addition amateurs were able to finish self-repairing experiment by expert support with much lower cost than the outsourcing cost to builders. However, the fact that the total amount such as material cost and personnel expenses for support was more than the cost that the questionnaire respondents would want to spend was an issue for further study .

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