The evidence from the past five years suggests that the transition economies that achieved low inflation, adopted radical banking reforms, and seriously reformed laws and institutions in the real estate sector should be among the first to develop a modern system of housing finance.The transition to markets dominates the development agenda of the 1990s. Financial sector reforms are central to a successful transition to a market economy. Renaud focuses on one dimension of these reforms: the development of housing finance institutions and services.He presents a progress report for the years since 1989, when the road to change opened with the collapse of communist regimes in most countries. Rather than a detailed account of reform in 25 countries, he offers a general framework for analyzing change and evaluating the prospects for rapid development of market-based housing finance systems.To understand why sound housing finance systems have not yet developed, one must consider factors in four key reform areas:deg; The macroeconomic policies adopted to liberalize the economy and stabilize prices.deg; Privatization policies, in particular in housing and real estate.deg; The strategies adopted - whether by design or by default - to reform the financial sector.deg; The nature of the financial priorities and institutional constraints affecting housing finance reform strategies followed in different countries.Housing finance policy development has been somewhat haphazard in many countries. But the evidence suggests that the transition economies that have achieved low inflation, have adopted radical banking reforms, and seriously reformed and liberalized their real estate sector should be among the first to develop a modern system of housing finance.This paper - a product of the Financial Sector Development Department - is part of a larger effort in the department to monitor financial development in transition economies.

January 1996 The evidence from the past five years suggests that the transition economies that achieved low inflation, adopted radical banking reforms, and seriously reformed laws and institutions in the real estate sector should be among the first to develop a modern system of housing finance. The transition to markets dominates the development agenda of the 1990s. Financial sector reforms are central to a successful transition to a market economy. Renaud focuses on one dimension of these reforms: the development of housing finance institutions and services. He presents a progress report for the years since 1989, when the road to change opened with the collapse of communist regimes in most countries. Rather than a detailed account of reform in 25 countries, he offers a general framework for analyzing change and evaluating the prospects for rapid development of market-based housing finance systems. To understand why sound housing finance systems have not yet developed, one must consider factors in four key reform areas: * The macroeconomic policies adopted to liberalize the economy and stabilize prices. * Privatization policies, in particular in housing and real estate. * The strategies adopted -- whether by design or by default -- to reform the financial sector. * The nature of the financial priorities and institutional constraints affecting housing finance reform strategies followed in different countries. Housing finance policy development has been somewhat haphazard in many countries. But the evidence suggests that the transition economies that have achieved low inflation, have adopted radical banking reforms, and seriously reformed and liberalized their real estate sector should be among the first to develop a modern system of housing finance. This paper -- a product of the Financial Sector Development Department -- is part of a larger effort in the department to monitor financial development in transition economies.

This book examines the large-scale social housing programs begun in Eastern and Central Europe after 2000 as an attempt to mitigate the inequality and declining standards of living that took hold in the region after the wave of privatizations that accompanied the political turn of the 1990s. It provides both case studies and theoretical frameworks for evaluating their successes and failures.

The book explores both theoretically and empirically the impacts of housing reforms on housing provision in the context of the transition from a centrally-planned to a market-based economy. Fifteen years after the overthrow of state socialism housing policy has lost its privileged status of a political priority as most politically emb- ded systems had favoured market-based solutions to housing problems. This dep- ture from state controlled housing policies with the aim of providing a dwelling for every family is significant, particularly in some post-socialist countries where no new housing policy has emerged. The transition process, embedded in the paradigm shift from central planning to markets, has triggered off turbulence and adjustments with tangible outcomes in post-socialist housing systems. What has changed and what new housing systems have emerged during this dramatic ‘transition to markets and democracy’? Are these systems more efficient and equitable? These questions are the main focus of the book with an emphasis on diversity and change in housing reforms. The book supports the hypothesis that notions of convergence are not really appropriate to the conceptualisation of post-socialist housing systems. It argues that different housing policy choices are going to map out increasingly divergent s- nario for future development.

This conference proceedings present papers providing the the first in-depth survey of current situation and challenges in the development of housing finance in major transition economies in particular, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia.

Almost one-third of the world's population has embarked on a transition from planned to market economies. Like economic reforms elsewhere, the long-term goal of this transition is to build a thriving market economy capable of delivering long-term growth in living standards. Now in its 19th annual edition, the World Development Report 1996 takes an in-depth look at these transition countries, focusing on the key lessons that have taken place thus far. The introduction to the Report poses a number of key questions that are addressed in later chapters, including questions relating to initial challenges and how contries have tackled them from very different starting points and political conditions. The Report also focuses on the additional challenges these transition countries face, with a final chapter that summarizes the main conclusion of the Report, creating a text that will no doubt become the definitive source for students stydying international economics and politics.