Social Housing in Transition: Comparative Perspectives on Privatisation in the UK and China

This book compares social housing privatisation in the UK and China, revealing convergent housing outcomes despite contrasting political systems. Both countries show weakened social housing, redefined as financial assets, highlighting shared policy failures and the need to rethink market-driven reforms globally.

It examines global neoliberal influences, city-level implementation in Greater Manchester and Hangzhou through comparative case studies that reveal the rise of financialisation, state–local entrepreneurism, and the limitations of market-driven reforms. By offering an understanding of how neoliberal policies transform housing governance and challenge dominant theories and combining empirical evidence with fresh theoretical insights, the book equips scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to rethink housing strategies, assess the consequences of privatisation, and explore alternatives for delivering affordable, secure housing in an era of global market pressures.

This book will appeal to professionals and researchers as well as policymakers in the fields of housing studies, urban studies, public policy, political economy, and comparative politics. While its theoretical contributions target academics, the case-study focus will also make it relevant to practitioners designing or evaluating housing policy.

Yiqian Wang got her doctorate degree from the School for Business and Society, University of York, UK. Now she is an early-career scholar based at Nanjing Agricultural University, China, with research interests centering on social housing, housing financialisation, welfare, and urban studies.