Real Estates: Life Without Debt

by Jack Self (editor), Shumi Bose (Editor), Roberta Marcaccio

Neoliberalism as a wealth redistribution imperative has made property ownership impossible or unprofitable for much of society. Whether in the form of mortgages or rent, we are consigned to living in conditions of perpetual debt. Real Life Without Debt explores the moral, political and economic ramifications of property and ownership in neoliberal debt economies, and asks what role the architect might play in addressing widening social and spatial inequality in the built environment.

Genres: Architecture

156 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 11, 2015

Reviews

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good read. A collection of largely polemic essays discussing the moral implications of property ownership, the normalisation of a debt riddled society, and the role architects might play in changing our understanding of domesticity vs dominion.

[Suzanne F. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set of essays on how our debt-riddled lives are making us slaves. Glad to finally see that architects are finally acknowledging that we have such little agency because we, like the poor buggers who have live in the things we now design for them, are end users of the current economic conditions.

Some of the essays are worth reading more than others.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Borrowed this book from the library for a friend but ended up reading it all myself -

[Ee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good collection of essays on neoliberalism and the built environment.