Towards a new housing approach : analysis of settlement environment and housing policy in Shanghai, China

Abstract

In the recent decade, China has been facing serious housing shortages and inequalities in the urban sector. Shanghai, the largest and the most congested city in the country, represents housing problems of China in its extreme. Based upon the situation of this city, the thesis demonstrates the working of China's urban housing policy: its achievements in eliminating urban slums at the early stage and its failure of providing adequate housing later on. The analysis of the housing problems is focused on the notion that housing should be a universally provided welfare commodity. A variety of negative effects resulted from this notion are broken down to illustrate: i) low priority and of investment and low production; ii) inequalities in distribution; iii) heavily subsidized rents; iv) difficulties in cost recovery; v) "stereotyped" new residential construct ion. In the light of the analysis, the thesis discusses the current experiment in housing policy reform. Although the direction of the reform toward commercialization seems appropriate, the actual remedial policy provides only a temporary relief of the housing shortage but complicates inequalities in the urban sector. The argument of the thesis is that practical reforms should challenge the investment pattern and the distribution structure which have together led the problems. A combination of market and non-market methods to channel state housing services and subsidies to different income is suggested as a more effective way. In addition, the reform of policy will inevitably have its impacts on architectural design. The aim of the thesis is to provide an overview of housing development in China. It shows that China shares with many industrializing countries a shortage of housing and housing inequality in the urban sector. Its housing problem, however, is brought about by a peculiar set of policy directives and institutional arrangements that differs entirely from many countries. The study provides a reference for future policy formulation in China.