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Based on data for Amsterdam, the Netherlands, this paper presents new evidence of a strong increase in the number of middle-class families in the city. By presenting the spatial patterns and trends of middle-class families in selected Amsterdam neighbourhoods, the paper shows that central neighbourhoods in particular attract middle-class families. In addition, new-build areas, both central and peripheral, offer a residential environment for middle-class families as a compromise between inner city and suburb. This paper links these patterns and trends with gentrification literature. Middle-class family neighbourhoods are classified in a typology that perceives neighbourhoods as fields that are accessed by means of capital, and operate as a stage for the accumulation of various forms of capital, which are associated with various habituses of the middle class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When analysing the spatial housing market structure of urban areas, a frequently arising question concerns the relevant criteria for housing market segmentation: is it the transaction price or related to other, socioeconomic. demographic and physical features of the location? In this study, two neural network techniques (SOM. LVQ, Kohonen) are used for identifying sub-markets within Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Because of the inductive nature of the modelling, any theory has to be understood in an open sense: generalising the principles of classification to another context to enable elaboration of institutionally sensitive housing market theory. These findings are therefore compared with earlier findings from another urban housing market—namely, Helsinki, Finland. The comparison shows that, while the price alone is an insufficient criterion for both markets, Amsterdam is more fragmented than Helsinki. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on the urban renewal policies in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is stated that the technical participatory inputs rest in the notion of the project group. It adds that the public dissatisfaction with early renewal projects such as the Kattenburg, where a strongly technical view of redevelopment prevailed, has fuelled the demands for greater resident involvement. In addition, housing has remained the most volatile and crucial issue to several Amsterdammers and the well-publicized civil disorders.