International Observatory on Social Housing
Examine the world of social housing from an international perspective.
I met Dr. John McPeake the CEO from Helm Housing Association in Northern Ireland recently and had the pleasure of hearing about how his agency is working on helping those with dementia. . Dr. McPeake let us know that in the UK the average age exceeded 40 for the first time in its history. By... Continue Reading →
The International Social Housing Festival is underway in Amsterdam and is bringing many interesting minds from academia, social housing companies and other think tanks together. Today we had the opportunity to hear from Maartin van Ham who is a professor of Urban Renewal at the University of Delft spoke about segregation and inequality. He brought... Continue Reading →
In my short career in social housing, I have noticed that many programs revolve around helping work able households improve self-sufficiency. There is a national program (FSS) just to do that in coordination with housing programs. However; housing providers often serve a large number of senior and disabled households. While there are a number of great examples... Continue Reading →
What is Social Housing in Spain, Really?? One thing you must remember when talking about public or social housing is that there is not really a great definition from country to country. Spain is not really any different here. What the Spanish consider social housing is not really rental in nature. Most of... Continue Reading →
Europe is known for its rich and strong social housing history. All across Europe, countries provide varying levels of social housing support . Is social housing the same in every country in Europe? Nope. That much is clear. Despite the lack of common definition, lets examine some of the big players in several countries. Netherlands:... Continue Reading →
Although I live in the USA, I am keenly aware of what is taking place in other countries. When I lived in Germany I spent several weeks in the UK looking at the social housing systems, programs and challenges. Of special interest to me were the welfare reforms affecting social housing associations. That included the bedroom tax,... Continue Reading →
Last Saturday, somewhere in the neighborhood of 12,000 refugees arrived in Munich in one single day. The large number puts a punctuation point on what is quickly becoming a race against time to find, build and provide enough housing for the new arrivals especially before winter comes. The German government decided last week to commit... Continue Reading →
Overview The population of Cologne is around 1.016 million. That makes the city around the 4th biggest in the entire country. Population estimates show that Cologne is expected to grow in the upcoming years. I believe the prognoses that are out there now will change dramatically and believing anything right now is dangerous. With the... Continue Reading →
Woonbond is a large tenants rights organization based in Amsterdam. The company considers itself the voice of renters from throughout the country. More than half of the residents in social housing are somehow connected to Woonbond through its membership and advocacy. That's more than 1.5 million members or 53% of all tenants in Holland. Woonbond’s... Continue Reading →
Recently I met with the Ministry of Interior and Kingdom Relations. The discussion revolved around changes in the social housing industry and what roles will change starting July 1st. The department within the Ministry focuses on the entire housing market including owner occupied housing, social housing and the private market. Both Roger and Simone work... Continue Reading →
International Observatory on Social Housing 