This article presents two cases of listed real estate companies that operate in the Ruhr metropolitan region of Germany. The first is Immeo Wohnen, a subsidiary of the French real estate investment trust (REIT) Foncière des Régions that was previously owned by a US hedge fund. The second is Vonovia, Germany's largest real estate company, originally a subsidiary of a British private equity firm. Both examples embody what we call the shift from financialisation 1.0 to financialisation 2.0, i.e. the transition from pure speculation to long‐term investment. We show that long‐term investment strategies are used by REITs and listed funds in order to release housing into the privatised mainstream of capital accumulation. With the advent of the financialisation of rental housing 2.0, the long‐term investment focus of these funds paradoxically enables a short‐term investment focus by buying and selling shares in these funds on the stock exchange.

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Bislang war in deutschen Städten das Wohnen im Eigentum – entweder im Eigenheim oder in der Eigentumswohnung – die Ausnahme. Insbesondere in Großstädten dominierte das Wohnen zur Miete. Gegenwärtig ändert sich dies: Großstädte wie Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg, Köln und München sind gegenwärtig geprägt von einer Kauflust privater und institutioneller Investoren. Zugleich hat in vielen Städten ein Ausverkauf und/oder Vermarktlichung des öffentlichen Wohnungsbestandes stattgefunden. Dies hat dazu beigetragen, dass die Preise sehr stark angestiegen sind. In dem Beitrag wird die aktuelle Entwicklung auf städtischen Wohnungsmärkten in Deutschland als Folge einer Finanzialisierung von Immobilien sowie einer Responsibilisierung im Bereich der Wohnversorgung analysiert. Es wird gefragt, welche Folgen dies in Städten hat.

The paper gives firstly, a summary of the literature on neoliberal urban governance of the past decade - especially on the "entrepreneurial city" - and more recent tendencies like the renewed focus on local communities. In the second part we show some important processes and phenomena of urban development in the global south - from the consequences of structural adjustment programs on the urban up to violence economies, gated communities and social urban movements - without claiming that that would encompass all of them and without the necessary distinction between different countries and localities. Finally, we open the discussion on the implications of these developments for critical urban theory and practice.

In the aftermath of an increasing integration of property and financial markets, the real estate industry is subject to soaring internationalization processes. Since international institutional investors appeared, transnational real estate investments have increased tremendously. In recent years, Central and Eastern European countries have been becoming more attractive to institutional investors and are therefore being integrated into international market structures. Within these countries, Warsaw emerged as the most dynamic and important real estate market. But what are the mechanisms and practices through which the real estate market of Warsaw becomes international? Which networks, intermediaries and frames are necessary to constitute a mature real estate market? The article argues that international real estate consultants are playing a crucial role in the underlying internationalization process. They are acting at the interface between investors, developers, construction companies and tenants and are therefore becoming a crucial hinge between real estate actors. With the example of the Warsaw real estate market we argue that international real estate consultancies are key drivers of the transformation process from a local to a global market. They transfer global knowledge, competence and practices and implement transparent and professional structures in the emerging Warsaw real estate market

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This article analyses the process of the expansion and integration of the EU from the perspective of a transformation to a competitive state formation. The recent construction of the EU is based on institutional arrangements which aim to combine different politics of scale with a general improvement of economic competitiveness and administrative efficiency. Recent theoretical advancement in state theory are applied in order to emphasise innovative aspects of European integration. After a concise overview about the history of the EU-territoriality and a discussion whether there is a spatial logic observable within the integration process the article outlines a political geography of the EU competition state and respective politics of scale. Finally the question of the future shape of the EU is re-addressed in light of strategic decisions to introduce a defensive or offensive flexibility.

In 1989, Warsaw's office market became part of the global property market with a growing transparency. This process of integration is attributable to an increasing level of professionalism of its agents. Our main interest here is in the introduction of international design and building norms. We argue that, in the interplay between global and local property professionals, new institutional arrangements emerge that lead to the establishment of international norms and standards. Moreover, because they reduce information asymmetries on a global scale, these international property consultants, whom we can regard as 'market-making intermediaries', are key actors in the creation of these new institutional arrangements. Property consultants, as part of global communities of practice (CoPs), are at the core of establishing a joint understanding of requirements in real estate practice. Regular communication with one another about the challenges, norms, specifications and demands in the professional management of office property helps to develop shared practices.