PHILIP ARESTIS is University Director of Research, Cambridge Centre for Economics and Public Policy, Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge, UK; Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, University of Utah, US; Senior Scholar, Levy Economics Institute, New York, US; Visiting Professor, Leeds Business School, University of Leeds, Department of Finance and Management Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, UK.   PETER MOOSLECHNER is the Director of the Economic Analysis and Research Department of the Oesterreichische Nationalbank, Vienna. He is teaching economics and economic policy at the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration and is a Member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the ECB. His publications cover macroeconomics, monetary and fiscal policy, financial markets and Eastern European issues.   KARIN WAGNER works as an economist at the Oesterreichische Nationalbank. Since 1997 she has been working at the Economic Analysis Division of the Economic Analysis and Research Department. Prior to being at the OeNB, she worked on various research projects. Her research interests include various aspects of the Austrian economy from a macroeconomic perspective, especially housing market developments and, from a microeconomic perspective, wealth survey topics.

• List of Figures and Tables Notes on the Contributors Introduction: Housing Market Challenges in Europe and the United States Housing Markets in Europe and in the USA – What Are the Relevant Issues Today? Subprime Mortgage Market and Current Financial Crisis Determinants of Homeownership Rates: Housing Finance and the Role of the State The Rental Housing Market Housing Markets, Business Cycles and Economic Policies European Rental Markets: Regulation or Liberalization? The Spanish Case Fiscal Aspects of Housing in Europe Towards a New Housing System in Transitional Countries – The Case of Hungary  House Price and Other Housing Market Data: A User's Perspective Residential Property Price Statistics for the Euro Area and the European Union Housing and Financial Wealth in Austria: What Can Survey Data Tell Us for the Analysis of Financial Stability Issues