Editorial

Citation

Reed, R. (2008), "Editorial", International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis, Vol. 1 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhma.2008.35101daa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis, Volume 1, Issue 4.

The Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) for the International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis recently met at the 15th Annual European Real Estate Society conference in Krackow, Poland. The meeting was also attended by Valerie Robillard who is the publisher representing Emerald. There was substantial interest in IJHMA at the conference, which also involved a joint panel discussion and a presentation to the local university about publishing. The EAB meeting reviewed the progress of the journal to-date, including the operation of the EAB and the overall submission review process. There were productive outcomes which confirmed the journal will remain at the forefront of research into housing, as well as ensuring the journal remains informative and has a meaningful contribution to knowledge. The main points of discussion focussed on the following:

1. 1.

   The type of article that the journal should publish and which countries should be represented. Although there are other journals in existence which include the word “housing” in their title, there are no other truly “international” housing journals and this is a major point of difference with IJHMA.

2. 2.

   Submissions are sought from authors who are conducting research into a cross-section of different countries, especially emerging countries and those with transitional economies.

3. 3.

   There will be special issues to focus on specific areas of current interest in the housing sector; these will commence in 2009.

4. 4.

   Guest editors from the EAB will be responsible for co-ordinating one issue per year.

5. 5.

   Other sections will be gradually introduced, such as a section which reviews international trends in housing and related measures.

Submissions of interest relating to the above points and other issues are encouraged and should be sent to the editor at: r.reed@deakin.edu.au

Importantly, housing continues to be a major source of attention with ongoing international concern about the provision of housing for both newly formed households and also older households. The levels of housing affordability have continued to decrease, which has been further complicated by pressures on housing loan availability and also interest rates. This is an area which requires substantial research, especially from the perspective for long-term implications.

This is the fourth issue of IJHMA for 2008 and special attention has been given to a broad coverage of international housing-related issues from different countries. Increasing attention has been given towards housing as an investment component in an investment portfolio, which is discussed in the paper which examined housing as a portfolio investment in Australia. Urban issues are identified in the research study which focussed on Kuala Lumpur, where the methodology involved a comprehensive survey approach. The third paper addressed a commonly sought-after topic, being the relationship between house prices and school zones using a New Zealand case study approach.

The paper from India examined the broad range of housing finance products available in that country, as well as investigating their associated conditions and relevance for borrowers. The paper from the UK discussed the relevance of sustainability for developers, and to what extent developers are fully aware of and marketing their sustainable property attributes. The final paper is truly international and examines housing supply from a global perspective.

Above all, the housing market continues to remain the most sought-after research area by property researchers and also draws the widest interest from a practical perspective. The papers in this issue support this heightened interest into this rapidly changing and diverse area. Please note I encourage your feedback (r.reed@deakin.edu.au) and also your submission for review and potential publication in this journal.

Richard Reed