The Unassuming Economist

On cross-country:

• European Mortgage Markets – European Mortgage Federation
• Romano Prodi: “We can show leadership in Europe now in support of affordable housing” An interview with the former European Commission President – Housing Europe
• An action plan for affordable housing in the EU – Housing Europe
• The Sharing Economy and Housing Affordability: What Impact? What Solutions? – Housing Europe

On the US:

• Dynamism Diminished: The Role of Housing Markets and Credit Conditions – University of Chicago
• Zoning Reform Alone Won’t Make Housing More Affordable – Bloomberg
• How Affordable Housing Can Improve the American Economy – Citylab
• No, Zoning Reform Isn’t Magic. But It’s Crucial. – Citylab
• Fewer Homes for Median Earners – New York Times
• Perspectives on Housing Supply and Affordability – NYU Furman Center
• The Airbnb Effect: It’s Not Just Rising Home Prices – Citylab
• Does Upzoning Boost the Housing Supply and Lower Prices? Maybe Not. – Citylab
• Mortgage Risk Since 1990 – Federal Housing Finance Agency
• In my back yard: Neighbourhood spillovers in mortgage foreclosure – VoxEU
• The Airbnb Effect: It’s Not Just Rising Home Prices – Citylab
• Upzoning Chicago: Impacts of a Zoning Reform on Property Values and Housing Construction – Urban Affairs Review
• Federal Reserve policy and housing: A goal too far – Economic Analysis and Policy
• What Modern-Day Housing Discrimination Looks Like: A Conversation with the National Fair Housing Alliance – Zillow
• How Minimum Zoning Mandates Can Improve Housing Markets and Expand Opportunity – The Aspen Institute
• To overcome its housing crisis, Calfornia needs YIMBY to become the new NIMBY – Los Angeles Times
• Mortgage rates fall on worries about global economy – MarketWatch

On other countries:

• [Australia] Australia’s Housing Downturn Deepens as Prices Hit 2016 Levels – Bloomberg
• [Australia] RBA Seen Riding Out Australia Property Slump If Jobs Stay Robust – Bloomberg
• [Australia] Australia Keeps Rates on Hold Despite Pressure from Property Slump – Bloomberg
• [Canada] Canada’s banking regulator says mortgage stress test must be monitored – Reuters
• [Netherlands] Dutch banks see market share in home mortgage lending stabilize – De Nederlandsche Bank
• [New Zealand] The New Zealand real estate problem, with reference to Palmerston North – Marginal Revolution
• [Nigeria] Land grabbers resurgence in Lagos threatens homeownership – The Guardian
• [Panama] Panama’s property prices are booming – Global Property Guide
• [United Kingdom] Would rent controls work in London? – Financial Times

Photo by Aliis Sinisalu

From the IMF’s latest report on Italy:

From the IMF’s latest report on Poland:

“Current strong housing demand is financed to a greater extent than before the GFC with buyers’ own resources. Rising construction costs have slowed the supply of new housing, and nominal house prices in some regions have risen to pre-GFC levels. Nonetheless, affordability remains comfortable owing to strong growth of household incomes.”

From the IMF’s latest report on UAE:

“A sharp deepening in the real estate downturn and weakening asset quality could constrain bank lending, which in turn could hold back the recovery.”

“Given the risk of spillovers from declining real estate prices, staff urged the CBU to resist calls for relaxing prudential limits on real estate lending. The authorities are preparing to develop a new bank resolution regime; in the meantime, staff encouraged the CBU to discuss contingency plans for banks in case of an abrupt tightening of financial conditions or other adverse shocks.”

On cross-country:

• Global Home Price Growth under Pressure – Fitch Ratings
• House Prices to Fall in Several APAC Markets in 2019 – Fitch Ratings

On the US:

• The Dream Revisited – Columbia University Press
• Supply Skepticism: Housing Supply and Affordability – NYU Furman Center
• In Lieu of Gifts, Please Make a Down Payment on Our New Home – Citylab
• Could High-Speed Rail Ease California’s Housing Crisis? See Japan. – Citylab
• More Housing Would Mean Cheaper Housing – Wall Street Journal
• California housing crisis podcast: Where’s the home building for the middle class? – Los Angeles Times
• AEI Housing Market Indicators release on October 2018 data – American Enterprise Institute
• Mortgage Risk Premiums during the Housing Bubble – The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics
• Big drop in US homebuilders’ shares could spell trouble – Financial Times
• Americans stopped buying homes in 2018, mortgage lenders are getting crushed, and an economic storm could be brewing – Business Insider
• Two Lawsuits Show What a Hot Mess California Housing Politics Is Right Now – Reason

On other countries:

• [China] Chinese Exiting U.S. Real Estate as Beijing Directs Money Back to Shore Up Economy – Wall Street Journal
• [India] Too slow for the urban march: Litigations and real estate market in Mumbai, India – Brookings
• [Lebanon] Lebanese Central Bank to Reinstate Subsidized Housing Loans – Bloomberg
• [New Zealand] New Zealand Vowed 100,000 New Homes to Ease Crunch. So Far It Has Built 47. – New York Times
• [Singapore] Singapore Is Seeing an Unprecedented Mortgage Slowdown – Bloomberg
• [United Kingdom] What goes up must come down: modelling the mortgage cycle – Bank of England
• [United Kingdom] London property transactions drop to decade low – Financial Times
• [United Kingdom] Call for rethink on UK planning rules for housing  – Financial Times

Photo by Aliis Sinisalu