Land construction and urban development policy in Serbia: impact of key contextual factors

The aim of this paper is to provide a systematized overview of urban land policy in Serbia, primarily regarding the impact of key contextual factors (historical, institutional, legal, etc.). Various historical and developmental contexts have caused regulation changes concerning construction land and its impact on the urban development in Serbia from the mid-19th century to the beginning of the 1990s. The analysis starts with an overview of the theoretical background of urban development policy and land regulation, followed by a brief reflection on the impact of key historical and legislative factors focused on the post-socialist period. The analysis of the urban land policy in the post-socialist period includes: key legislation; ownership status of construction land and property rights; conversion of ownership status; general policy instruments; key urban land management issues in Serbian cities; and a preliminary evaluation of the implementation effects of the existing urban land system in Serbia. Several research methods have been applied here, viz., the conceptual benchmarking framework for the dominant legal doctrine; a general qualitative analysis of the contemporary context; institutional and comparative analyses, etc. Although the former socialist concept of the welfare state has been transformed into a neoliberal concept in a short period, there is an evident delay in the reforms of the Serbian urban land policy. The paper presents numerous findings regarding the impact of the current system and practice on the general urban land policy in Serbia, while also focusing on the concomitant developments in the Belgrade Area. The paper concludes with the recommendations regarding the harmonisation and innovation of urban land policy and urban development policy in Serbia in the post-socialist era.