LAS VEGAS: The first 20-year survey of public housing trends in North America, Europe and Asia has highlighted the decline in public housing investment. Researchers at UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP) compiled data from governments, housing and non-profit agencies, and academic articles for their report, titled “The Future of Public Housing: Trends in Public Housing Internationally.”
They found that in 12 out of 16 countries with available historical data, the number of public housing units declined as a proportion of overall housing. The exception is Denmark and France.
Public housing is commonly built for low-income and other disadvantaged groups, and consists mostly of rental buildings or housing co-ops, operated by governments or non-profit associations. Rents are set typically at 30 per cent of income…