Chapter 14 highlights the key themes of the book and their implications for policy. Although there is considerable agreement among economists with regard to the range of required policy reforms - including changes to land use planning, taxation, social housing provision, rents and subsidies, and to financial markets - there are external constraints, both political and economic, that impose limitations on even the most positive reforming governments. But the absence of positive policy change in the UK would imply that the worsening affordability and volatility that have often typified housing markets are likely to continue. The book shows the need to extend housing policy beyond a concentration on expanding supply and points to the need for a more balanced approach that incorporates policies addressing demand as well as the supply sides of housing. Given the policy constraints, the chapter also points to possible new directions.
People Versus Place, People and Place, or More? New Directions for Housing Policy