The sale of public and social housing has been a major aspect of housing policies in recent decades. Privatisation and a general retreat by governments from the housing arena have pushed up sales; this has been particularly evident within Eastern European countries and China but is also taking place in many Western European countries and Australia. Wherever it occurs, such privatisation has lead to new challenges for housing management. Many estates are now a mix of public and private, raising questions about the division of responsibilities between different owners. Legislation to address this is not adequate and public managers are still hampered by the bureaucratic mechanisms within their organisations, while the new owners are not used to their responsibilities for maintenance. Added to this are the limited financial resources for renewal and maintenance among both public and private owners at a time when the need for investments is urgent, especially within the massive housing estates dating from the communist era. Experts from Australia, France, the Netherlands, UK, Switzerland, China, the Czech Republic, Moldavia, Russia, Serbia and Slovenia present their county's context and the policies and practice for managing privatised housing, together with case studies illustrating the issues described. How privatised public housing is managed is of international concern, which will benefit from an international exchange of knowledge and best practice. The comparative analysis offered in Management of Privatised Housing: International Policies & Practice makes a significant contribution to the literature on this important topic.

The sale of public and social housing has been a major aspect of housing policies in recent decades. Privatisation and a general retreat by governments from the housing arena have pushed up sales; this has been particularly evident within Eastern European countries and China but is also taking place in many Western European countries and Australia.Wherever it occurs, such privatisation has lead to new challenges for housing management. Many estates are now a mix of public and private, raising questions about the division of responsibilities between different owners. Legislation to address this is not adequate and public managers are still hampered by the bureaucratic mechanisms within their organisations, while the new owners are not used to their responsibilities for maintenance. Added to this are the limited financial resources for renewal and maintenance among both public and private owners at a time when the need for investments is urgent, especially within the massive housing estates dating from the communist era.Experts from Australia, France, the Netherlands, UK, Switzerland, China, the Czech Republic, Moldavia, Russia, Serbia and Slovenia present their county's context and the policies and practice for managing privatised housing, together with case studies illustrating the issues described.How privatised public housing is managed is of international concern, which will benefit from an international exchange of knowledge and best practice. The comparative analysis offered in Management of Privatised Housing: International Policies & Practice makes a significant contribution to the literature on this important topic.

INTRODUCTION: Conceptual Framework.Part I - CASE STUDIES FROM WESTERN EUROPE ANDAUSTRALIA.England, The Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Australia..Part II - CASE STUDIES FROM EASTERN EUROPE AND CHINA.Serbia, The Czech Republic, Slovenia, Russia, MoldovaChina..POST-PRIVATISATION IN HOUSING: POLICY AND RESEACH AGENDA.In order to facilitate cross-national analyses, all chapters arewritten according to the same general format. This format consistsof four sections:.Section 1: Description of national housing context in countryX. a description of the national composition of the housing stockaccording to tenure, size, and dwelling type, supported bystatistics;. a general description of the housing system: whichorganisations develop and manage the housing stock; what aregovernment regulations for housing development and managementconcerning rent setting, allocations, sales, maintenance andrenewal, and tenant involvement; how are the landlords supervised(by whom and on what basis); what financial support exists forhousing management, renewal and development (exploitation grantssubsidies for renewals, government loans, government guaranteeshousing grants)?. a general description of the situation on the housing market:shortages and surpluses according region, dwelling type, tenure andprice. a reflection on the occurrence of housing problemsproblematic neighbourhoods, vacancies, etc..Section 2: Privatisation in country X. a reflection on the privatisation policies in the pastdecades;. description on the occurrence of privatisation, supported bystatistics of the pace of privatisation (quantities);. a description of the conditions under which dwellings weresold: price and the division of management responsibilities betweenlandlords and homeowner;. an analysis of the challenges for maintenance and renewal ofthe partly-privatised estates;. an analysis of the institutional, organisational, culturalsocial and financial problems of management;. policies and (innovative) practices that have been or arebeing implemented to deal with these problems..Section 3: Case study.Describes one or more case studies of partly privatised estates.These cases may be selected on the basis of their representation ofcommon problems and/or solutions in country X and/or on the basisof the innovative 'best practice' approach that hasbeen undertaken to deal with the problems. The section about thecase study will consist of:. a description the estate (quality, division according totenure, price, position on the housing market);. a reflection on the privatisation process (pace, backgroundconditions);. a description of social, functional and technical problemsthat occur in the estate and the problems of managementmaintenance and renewal;. a reflection on to what extent the above problems are causedor increased by the privatisation;. a reflection on the initiatives that have been and will beundertaken to cope with the problems and their (expected)success..Section 4: Conclusion.Contains a brief summary of the chapter plus an outlook for thefuture problems/challenges.