ancient cities

has been a federal priority since the early 1990s.
Successive presidential administrations have
launched policy initiatives, largely using front-end
programs that help households attain homeownership,
such as homebuyer training programs, down
payment assistance, and housing rehabilitation.
Furthermore, financial institutions have expanded
their commitment to lending to low-income and
minority households in response to the passage of
what are known in the United States as fair-lending
laws, an example of which is the Community
Reinvestment Act of 1977, which requires lending
institutions to demonstrate they are meeting the
credit needs of all households in the communities
they serve. These policies have been successful in
boosting the homeownership rate of low-income
and minority households.
Tracy Turner
See also Common Interest Development; Condominium;
Homeowners Associations; Housing; Housing Tenure;
Social Housing; Suburbanization
Further Readings
Chiuri, Maria Concetta and Tullio Jappelli. 2001.
“Financial Market Imperfections and Home Ownership:
A Comparative Study.” Discussion Paper No. 2717,
Centre for Economic Policy Research, London.
Colton, Kent W. 2003. Housing in the Twenty-First
Century. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University,
Wertheim Publications Committee.
Gilderbloom, John I. and John P. Markham. 1995. “The
Impact of Homeownership on Political Beliefs.” Social
Forces 73(4):1589–1607.
Turner, Tracy M. 2003. “Does Investment Risk Affect
the Housing Decisions of Families?” Economic
Inquiry 41(4):675–91.
United Nations. 2005. Financing Urban Shelter: Global
Report on Human Settlements 2005. United Nations
Human Settlements Program (UN-HABITAT).
London: Earthscan.
Ho n G Ko n G , CH i n a
Hong Kong, meaning “fragrant harbor” in
Chinese and officially called Hong Kong Special
Hong Kong, China
369
Administrative Region (Hong Kong SAR) since
1997, is located on the Pearl River Delta, south
China. Hong Kong SAR is made up of Hong Kong
Island, Kowloon Peninsula, New Kowloon, and
New Territories. It borders Guangdong province
in the north and faces the South China Sea in the
east, west, and south. It has a land area of 1,068
square kilometers and a population of 6.9 million
(as of 2006), giving an overall population density
of 5,385 people per square kilometer.
Hong Kong is among the world’s most compact
and densely populated cities. Whereas average
population density in the New Territories is 2,560
people per square kilometer, on Hong Kong Island,
Kowloon Peninsula, and New Kowloon, population
density increases to 26,950 people per square
kilometer. Within the urban area, for example, the
Mongkok district, population density can be as
high as 116,531 people per square kilometer.
Hong Kong’s population is predominantly Chinese
(95 percent); the rest are non-Chinese residents
and expatriates. Hong Kong is one of the world’s
leading financial centers, a major business hub
where East meets West.
Historical Evolution
Its modern history started when Hong Kong Island
became a British entrepot for China trade in 1842
following China’s defeat in the first Anglo–Chinese
Opium War (1839–1842). Britain ceded the Kowloon
Peninsula in 1860 during the Second Opium War
(1858–1860). In 1898, the New Territories was
leased to Britain for 99 years. British colonization
transformed the onetime village into a town and
introduced planned settlement through urban planning,
as practiced under British town planning legislation.
For much of the colonial period, the
administration’s attitude was largely laissez-faire, as
concern was with trade development. The British
administrated Hong Kong through a governor
appointed by the Colonial Office in London, aided
by the executive and legislative councils. No Chinese
officially sat on either council until 1880.
Hong Kong’s early development was driven by
the growth of international trade between Europe
and Asia. Its free market enterprise society
soon became the center of immigration for
Chinese from mainland China and a refuge for