Irish Housing in the European Context

This book has identified the defining characteristics of the system of housing provision in Ireland and examined recent developments in housing ma rkets and non market provision of housing, housing policy, legislation and regulation, together with the social, economic, and built environment implications of these developments. This final chapter assesses the performance of the Irish housing system ov er the last decade in comparison with the other European Union member States. This analysis focuses principally on five issues. These are: the context for housing policy making, including economic and demographic trends pertinent to housing; the accessib ility of housing; housing quality; recent housing policy developments and the outcomes produced by the combination of these policy interventions and structural factors including, trends in house prices, mortgage lending, new house building and public expen diture on housing.