Housing and the City
Syllabus 2022-2023
[Link]@[Link]
Please read this document carefully before contacting the lecturer with any
questions. If your question is not answered in this document, please keep it for the
first sessions. In case you still need to contact the lecturer, please do so with the
email address mentioned above.
Content
Housing and urban systems have emerged in each city and society reflecting
variegated dwelling practices and spatial relations as well as variegated historical
processes. Housing and urban systems thus provide a particular lens into societies
and social change. This course addresses the built environment as a fundamental
socio-economic dimension.
The course begins by considering the socio-economic and political importance of the
built environment and goes on to elaborate how housing and urban systems have
interacted with processes of international convergence and divergence. We pay
attention to the different actors involved in both urban/housing policies and different
housing market segments (i.e. the owner-occupied, private rented and social rented
markets).
We discuss the following topics: political economy and other approaches in
urban/housing studies; ideology, welfare and urban/housing policies; housing tenure,
financialization and non-market housing; gentrification, uneven development and
neighbourhood/urban change; urban neoliberalism and entrepreneurialism; and
finally, comparative urban and housing studies. The growing commodification of
housing markets and urban space have helped reconfigure the field of urban/housing
studies within the social sciences in recent decades and have reemphasised the
importance of the built environment in understanding both cities and societies,
including an appreciation of the differences between cities and countries.
Aims
This course aims:
- to acquire knowledge of the different ways in which geography or place play
an important role in contemporary societies, in particular in cities and their built
environment.
- to acquire knowledge of the different actors involved in urban/housing policies
and housing markets.
- to develop analytical and critical understanding of the complex interactions
between globalization, social change and the built environment.
- to develop analytical and critical understanding of the various socio-economic
and political differences in the production, consumption and meaning of housing and
the built environment through the evaluation of international cases.
- to develop awareness and knowledge of how urban geography and housing
studies have used insights of and provided insights to socio-economic geography
and the social sciences more widely defined.
Evaluation
There is no exam for this course in January.
The various activities of this course are evaluated as follows:
- 50% individual paper to be submitted in January
- 30% in-class presentation OR critical summary
- 20% participation in class discussions and fieldtrip
As part of each class consists of seminars, you are obliged to attend each session.
Missing more than one session without a valid legal reason (e.g., doctor’s note)
results in the student being excluded from their first and second examination. In case
the absence is legalized (e.g., medical proof), the lecturer needs to be contacted as
soon as possible.
If you are unable to attend the first session(s) due to travel or quarantine, please
contact the lecturer with your name, program, specialization, and expected first class
attendance. Unfortunately, we are scheduled in a room without video recording
facilities, so you will need to rely on the PowerPoints and readings on Toledo (and
eventually on notes taken by your classmates).
A failed presentation, critical summary or paper can be compensated by writing a
new reflection (on a topic assigned by the lecturer) or new paper for the August-
September evaluation period.
Format
BEFORE each session, ALL students are expected to watch a video lecture and to
read two papers. Please bring the readings with your notes to class. During the
classroom sessions you will discuss difficulties with these readings and reflect on the
content of the chapters/papers with your peers and with the lecturer. All students
prepare at least one question per session.
In each session, there will also be students presenting additional papers and critical
summaries thereof. All students will be scheduled to EITHER prepare one
presentation OR write one critical summary. This will be the basis for the class
discussion, together with the texts read by all students. Below, it is indicated per
session which chapters/papers need to be read in advance by all students, and
which only by the students presenting.
Sessions
All sessions take place on Tuesday mornings from 9am till noon in Celestijnenlaan
200 E room 01.212 (building E on Heverlee campus).
In the run of the first week, students will be divided over two groups. Group 1 will
meet at 9 am; group 2 at 10:30am. Send an email to [Link]@[Link]
in case you can’t find yourself on the list distributed on Monday 3rd of October.
Schedule
Session Date Topic
1 27/09 Introductory lecture, explanation of student assignments
2 04/10 Basics of housing: ‘tenure’, mortgages and bigger picture
3 11/10 Basics of urban politics/policies: different theories
4 18/10 Housing meets urban policies: gentrification
5 25/10 Neoliberal & entrepreneurial urbanism
01/11 No session: self-guided fieldtrip to Charleroi
6 08/11 Discussion seminar: self-guided fieldtrip to Charleroi
7 15/11 Comparative urban/housing studies
8 22/11 Housing finance & crisis/crises
9 29/11 Financialization of housing
10 06/12 Suburbanisation
11 13/12 New gentrification: short-term rentals and touristification
12 20/12 Enclave urbanism
* Fri. January 6, 18:00h: deadline paper
The presentation
!!!! Please e-mail your PowerPoint or pdf to [Link]@[Link] before
5pm on the day before your presentation !!!
- The presentation should last 8-10 minutes, but absolutely no longer than 10
minutes!
- Approximately 5-7 slides; the first slide should include the full title of the
chapters/papers and your name and e-mail address; the last slide should include
questions and topics for debate. This leaves only 3-5 slides for other matters and this
forces you to be selective.
- It is important to learn how to synthesise rather than to try to discuss everything in
the paper. Hence, it is a good exercise to select one ‘key sentence’ – sometimes
known as a ‘golden sentence’ – for each of the papers. You could put it on a slide
and then use one minute to explain why this is the key sentence and what it means.
- It is important to learn how to relate different things to each other. Hence, you will
explain how the chapters/papers that you discuss is related to the other readings for
that session, the video lecture and the wider topic of the course.
- Do not make your slides too dense; they should provide a structure, not all the
details.
The critical summary
!!!! Please e-mail your text to [Link]@[Link] before 5pm on the day
before your presentation !!!!
- Is a short essay/paper of around 1000 words in which you summarize the assigned
literature (900-1100 words, excluding references).
- Write in arial11 or times12 (not in any other font!), single-spaced (i.e., lining at 1.0
rather than 1.5 or double-spaced) and with proper paragraphing and referencing.
- The general summary can be very brief, which would allow you to focus on a
specific part of the argument you find interesting/relevant to the topic of that week or
the course more widely speaking.
- You will critically assess the assigned text. You reflect on the argument of the paper
as well as take a stance in the debate yourself.
- In the class session you will play an active role in the discussion that follows the
student presentation. Bring a copy to class or keep a copy open on your digital
device, so you can rely on it during the class discussion.
- The general rules for the paper (see below) also apply to the critical summary
The paper
* Deadline = Friday January 6, 18:00h. To be submitted on Toledo.
A couple of rules:
- Start from a very specific research question related to the topic of the course, e.g.
squatting, crisis, social housing, urban entrepreneurialism, mortgage market,
gentrification, ...
- One option is to study this topic in a place you are familiar with, e.g. a city or a
country. Alternatively, you can compare the situation in one country to another, e.g.,
social housing in Belgium and Canada, homelessness in Brussels and Montreal or
government support for homeownership in Flanders and Quebec.
- You can send a short proposal for a research question to
[Link]@[Link] and ask him for feedback during the semester
- It is important to study your case within its context. This implies that you have to say
something about the national housing system or urban context.
- The paper should be written in either UK or US English. Only if you are registered
for the Dutch-language masters’ program, you can choose between Dutch and
English. Read, re-read and re-re-read your work carefully before handing in. Not all
non-native speakers might be able to write perfect English, but they should still try
hard to write decent English. Yet, it is essential to write in your own language.
Plagiarism is a crime. So is self-plagiarism.
- The word count of your final paper should be 2,500-3,000 words without
bibliography.
- Hand in an A4-paged word document, single-lined, times 12 or arial 11 with 2.5 cm
margins on all sides. The first page of this document mentions your full name and a
title.
- Show that you are able to apply the knowledge and skills you picked up in this
course to study your case. This means that you are encouraged to use concepts
from this course in your research question and analysis. In any case, you will need to
cite at least three papers from the obligatory readings and two additional papers from
the in-class presentations.
- It is essential to include a FULL bibliography that lists ALL the academic literature,
printed media and relevant websites you have used. Add references to this literature
whenever appropriate. There are different systems to cite literature. It doesn’t matter
so much which system you use, as long as you’re consistent and supply full
references (no missing details).
- In your introduction, you should formulate a clear research question. In your
conclusion, you should answer this research question. You should also discuss what
people in other countries could learn from your case.
- Add illustrations (tables, figures, photos, maps) whenever relevant. Do not forget to
add a title, source and reference for each illustration.
Session 1: Introduction
No compulsory readings
Session 2: Basics of housing
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
- Aalbers, M.B. & Christophers, B. (2014) Centring Housing in Political
Economy, Housing, Theory and Society, 31 (4), 373-394.
- Housing Europe (2017). The state of housing in the EU 2017. Only pages 10-
23 to be read. (bottom of page numbering rather than digital numbering)
Additional readings (2 student presentations)
1.) Schwartz, H. M., & Seabrooke, L. (2009). Varieties of residential capitalism in the
international political economy: Old welfare states and the new politics of housing,
Comparative European Politics (2008) 6, 237–261.
Presentation in session 1: Sylvain Guichard
Critical summary in session 1: Deniz Tekin
Presentation in session 2: Itai Mtasa
Critical summary in session 2: Abra Simonic
2.) Scanlon, K., Fernández Arrigoitia, M. & Whitehead, C.M.E. (2015) Social housing
in Europe. European Policy Analysis (17) pp. 1-12.
Presentation in session 1: Weronika Adamczak
Critical summary in session 1: Joris Kolsters
Presentation in session 2: Georges Gabriel
Critical summary in session 2: Pauline Paternostre
Session 3: Urban Politics
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
- Stoker, G. (1995). “Regime Theory and Urban Politics.” In Theories of Urban
Politics (D. Judge, G. Stoker and H. Wolman, eds). London: Sage.
- Molotch, H. (1993). The political economy of growth machines. Journal of Urban
Affairs 15(1), 29-53
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.) Kantor, P., Savitch, H.V. & Vicari Haddock, S. (1997) The Political Economy of
Urban Regimes: A Comparative Perspective. Urban Affairs Review 32(3), 348-377.
Presentation in session 1: Nele Fraiponts
Critical summary in session 1: Giorgia Ferri
Presentation in session 2: Ezra Rawitsch
Critical summary in session 2: Margaux Mathieu
2.) Cox, K.R. (2017). Revisiting the City as a Growth Machine, Cambridge Journal of
Regions, Economy and Society, 10, 391- 405
Presentation in session 1: Dino Pambudi
Critical summary in session 1: Hanne Dernau
Presentation in session 2: Lucy Verstraeten
Critical summary in session 2: Oona Salonen
Session 4: Gentrification
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
- Smith, N. (1979). Toward a theory of gentrification a back to the city movement by
capital, not people. Journal of the American Planning Association, 45(4), 538-548.
- Smith, N. (1982). Gentrification and uneven development. Economic geography,
58(2), 139-155.
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.) Clark, E. (1988). The rent gap and transformation of the built environment: Case
studies in Malmö 1860–1985. Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography,
70(2), 241-254.
& Krijnen, M. (2018). Gentrification and the creation and formation of rent gaps:
Opening up gentrification theory to global forces of urban change. City, 22(3) 437-
446.
Presentation in session 1: Anthony Tarigan
Critical summary in session 1: Hilda Arum Nurbayyanti
Presentation in session 2: Marinna Lorenz
Critical summary in session 2: Ngoc Trieu
2.) Van Criekingen, M. (2008). Towards a geography of displacement. Moving out of
Brussels’ gentrifying neighbourhoods. Journal of housing and the built environment,
23(3), 199-213.
& Romainville, A. (2010). Who benefits from home ownership support policies in
Brussels? Brussels Studies 34.
Presentation in session 1: Andrea Van der Velden
Critical summary in session 1: Ona Vanrusselt
Presentation in session 2: Amanda Chi
Critical summary in session 2: Silke Van Hecke
Session 5: The Neoliberal and Entrepreneurial City
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
- Brenner, N. and N. Theodore (2002) Cities and the geographies of ‘actually
existing neoliberalism’. Antipode 34.3, 349–79.
- Harvey, D. (1989) From managerialism to entrepreneurialism: The
transformation in urban governance in late capitalism. Geografiska Annaler B, 71(1)
3-17.
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.) He, S., & Wu, F. (2009). China's emerging neoliberal urbanism: Perspectives from
urban redevelopment. Antipode, 41(2), 282-304.
& Wu, F. (2018). Planning centrality, market instruments: Governing Chinese urban
transformation under state entrepreneurialism. Urban Studies, 55(7), 1383-1399.
Presentation in session 1: Muhti Evirawani
Critical summary in session 1:Trang Nguyen
Presentation in session 2: Eleftheria Athanasa
Critical summary in session 2: Fernanda Peixoto
2.) Shatkin, G. (2016). The real estate turn in policy and planning: Land monetization
and the political economy of peri-urbanization in Asia. Cities, 53, 141-149.
& Shatkin, G. (2008). The city and the bottom line: urban megaprojects and the
privatization of planning in Southeast Asia. Environment and Planning A, 40(2), 383-
401.
Presentation in session 1: Fernanda Zago
Critical summary in session 1: Alvaro Pastor
Presentation in session 2: Lisa Tum
Critical summary in session 2: Caterina Motta
Session 7: Comparative urban/housing studies
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2:
Session 8: Housing finance & crisis/crises
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2:
Session 9: Financialization of housing
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2:
Session 10: Suburbanisation
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2:
Session 11: New gentrification: short-term rentals
and touristification
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2:
Session 12: Enclave urbanism
Compulsory readings (everyone needs to read this before class):
-
-
Additional readings (2 student presentations):
1.)
&
Presentation in session 1:
Critical summary in session 1:
Presentation in session 2:
Critical summary in session 2: