Lack of affordable housing in the world’s biggest cities is pushing people to alternative cities, according to Yolande Barnes, head of world research at Savills.
Speaking during a panel session entitled ‘Migration and housing: how can we turn the challenges into opportunities for cities?’ at the annual ULI conference in Paris last week, Barnes said different cities fare differently in terms of their attractiveness in providing affordable housing, but added that this would become an increasingly important factor in the war for talent.
‘What attracts people to cities is not necessarily what we have built or are building. Research shows that people singularly do not want to live near an out-of-town business park from the 20th century.’
Alternative cities are growing fast
‘Dispersed’ cities beyond major capitals such as Margate to the south of London and Newcastle to the north of Sydney in Australia will gain in importance in the coming decades, she argued. 'What most people are looking for is a liveable neighbourhood. There are sufficient alternative cities that are now growing fast.’
London is a prime example of a city facing an affordable housing crisis due to its growing population, James Murray, deputy mayor for housing and residential development at the City of London, conceded. ‘The development of other cities in the UK certainly helps the capital.'
At present, demand by far outstrips supply in the UK capital, he continued. 'London is strained in terms of affordability, everybody agrees there is a crisis. But there seems to be a consensus around the solutions and we are now building a coalition around the actions we need to take. What has struck me in the past six or seven months is the spirit of cooperation that has defined the period in office of the new mayor (Sadiq Khan ed).’
Public-private partnerships
A key question facing many capital cities is how to fund infrastructure and capture value through development and make sure it is reinvested to the benefit of the city, Murray said. 'That is a major challenge for big cities across the world.'
One potential solution is more partnerships between the public and private sector, Murray said. ‘There are certain things that the public sector has to lead on, for example to ensure that land is assembled in the right way and that funding is available to enable private sector investment.’
The development of the area around King’s Cross and St Pancras railway station is a case in point, he added. The municipal authorities succeeded in consolidating the land ownership and were able to facilitate the development of a neighbourhood with a mix of retail, offices and restaurants and a focus on small businesses, he added. ‘A sense of place has been developed there with some unusual retail offers. It has a real buzz to it.’
The fundamentals of London remain strong, Murray argued. 'The biggest challenge is to build more affordable housing. Londoners accept that it will take time to move the big tanker around. But if we can start turning it, we will see more affordable housing in all neighbourhoods in the capital.'
