Innovating local housing policies in a country of homeowners. Insights from an Italian affluent medium-sized city

Cities face increasing housing needs, particularly in Southern European countries, as well as tightening constraints on public expenditure. The mismatch between income levels and housing costs has come to concern a larger and more diversified share of the population so that housing needs strike beyond the poorest and most underprivileged profiles. This article discusses the outcomes of fieldwork conducted in San Donato Milanese, a medium-sized, affluent town in the Milan metropolitan area, to explore the changing facets of housing issues and the margins for action that can innovate local public action.