Planning reform, land release and the supply of housing

There is a growing interest in academic and policy circles in the relationship between land use planning policy and housing supply. Housing researchers are interested in the extent to which planning policies and practises may be exacerbating housing affordability questions, while planning academics and practitioners focus on what effect their policies actually have on the characteristics of housing supply. Policies seeking a diversity of built form are underpinned by attempts to reduce energy consumption through smaller house sizes and the design of less car dependent suburbs. Urban Growth Boundaries (UGBs) and increased net housing densities seek to slow the expansion of cities into hinterlands and reduce travel costs. The impact of UGBs on house prices is one of a number of issues that remains contested (Nelson et al 2007; Buxton and Scheurer 2007).