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The emergence of a Build to Rent model: The role of narratives and discourses

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  • Frances Brill
  • Daniel Durrant

Abstract

This paper analyses ‘Build to Rent’ (BTR), a new form of tenure in London’s housing market. We examine the ways in which private and public sector actors have shaped the context of BTR’s emergence, and developed a model for delivery in London. We argue they relied on and constructed narratives of negativity about the private rental sector, which were juxtaposed with their product to position BTR as a solution to part of London’s housing crisis. Building on this, and leveraging an emerging but supportive institutional context, real estate professionals have adapted a US model to the UK. We argue that both the narrative-generating activities and the model development reveal tensions, which help theorise the ways new models of financing housing emerge.

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  • Frances Brill & Daniel Durrant, 2021. "The emergence of a Build to Rent model: The role of narratives and discourses," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 53(5), pages 1140-1157, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:53:y:2021:i:5:p:1140-1157
    DOI: 10.1177/0308518X20969417
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Raco, Mike & Ward, Callum & Brill, Frances & Sanderson, Danielle & Freire-Trigo, Sonia & Ferm, Jess & Hamiduddin, Iqbal & Livingstone, Nicola, 2022. "Towards a virtual statecraft: housing targets and the governance of urban housing markets," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114315, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. Ian Chng & Jonathan Reades & Phil Hubbard, 2024. "Planning deregulation as solution to the housing crisis: The affordability, amenity and adequacy of Permitted Development in London," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 56(3), pages 961-978, May.
    3. Frances Brill, 2022. "Governing investors and developers: Analysing the role of risk allocation in urban development," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 59(7), pages 1499-1517, May.
    4. White, Tim, 2024. "Beds for rent," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 120046, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Goulding, Richard & Haslam, Colin & Leaver, Adam & Silver, Jonathan, 2024. "A ‘Distributional Apparatus’ for real estate: Fair value accounting and the assetization of UK property," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).

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