Welfare Reform on the Web (September 2001): Social Housing - Overseas

CHOOSING THE ROWERS: ARE PRIVATE MANAGERS OF PUBLIC HOUSING MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN PUBLIC MANAGERS?

F. W. Becker, M. J. Dluhy and J. P. Topinka

American Review of Public Administration, vol. 31, 2001, p. 181-200

Based on data from a study of the privatization of public housing management in a major US metropolitan area, study concludes that privatization will be likely to produce substantial cost savings because of rigidities in the purchasing and personnel systems of local housing authorities. These savings can be gained without a decrease in housing quality. The true cost of greater efficiency in this case appears to lie in a decrease in the availability of social services.

DOES URBAN PUBLIC HOUSING DIMINISH THE SOCIAL CAPITAL AND LABOR FORCE ACTIVITY OF ITS TENANTS?

D. A. Reingold, G. V. van Ryzin, and M. Ronda

Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, vol. 20, 2001, p. 485-504

Paper investigates the effect of US urban public housing on the social capital and labour force activity of its tenants using cross-sectional survey data from the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality. Results show that neighbourhood disadvantage, not public housing, is the more important determinant of lack of social capital and labour force activity among low-income families. Even this has relatively small direct effects on social capital and labour force activity compared to other factors such as work experience, the presence of children and health status.