Having a background in real estate economics and law, Anna´s main interest is the intersection between housing, land and planning. Her research often explores institutional prerequisites for sustainable affordable housing development.
Senior Research Fellow & Staff Manager
Anna Granath Hansson
Spatial Story
Growing up in Stockholm and Östergötland, I early learnt the charm of exploring the world on foot, wandering through the woods, seeking out the most beautiful houses and gardens in the cities and villages. With time, I extended my walks throughout Europe and beyond, finding favourite places like Skagen, Lenbachhaus in Munich, Jardin des Plantes in Paris, the old town in Prague and the iris fields of the Pyrenees. During my many trips and out of 24 addresses in five countries, I collected a treasure of slow-paced spatial impressions, walking for hours and hours. Also in my work, I often employ walks as a way to better understand places, how they function and how people and animals use them. A favourite walk today is the bridge to Skeppsholmen, the little island in Stockholm where Nordregio’s office is located. Walking over the bridge in the morning, I discover new facets of my home-town and through my work and colleagues I get insights into other near and far places, a truly rewarding experience for everyone interested in space and place.
Publications
Peer-reviewed papers and book chapters
Granath Hansson, A. 2025. Land policy in Sweden: The paradoxical difficulty of creating affordable housing at the intersection of municipal land allocation, local planning and housing policy, In Eds. Hartmann, T., Hengstermann, A., Jehling, M., Schindelegger, A., and Wenner, F., Land Policy in Europe: Land-Use Planning, Property Rights, and Spatial Development, Springer Verlag.
Granath Hansson, A., Sørensen, J., Nordahl, BI. & Tophøj Sørensen, M. 2024. Contrasting Inclusionary Housing Initiatives in Denmark, Sweden and Norway: How the past shapes the present. Housing Studies, DOI: 10.1080/02673037.2024.2323607.
Granath Hansson, A. & Bergsten, L. 2023. Intermediary housing tenures in Sweden: Developers’ response to inaccessible housing markets and its implications for tenant-buyers. Nordic Journal of Urban Studies, 3(1), 4-22.
Granath Hansson, A. 2021. Housing the Vulnerable: Municipal Strategies in the Swedish Housing Regime. European Journal of Homelessness, 15:2, 13-36.
Granath Hansson, A., Ekbäck, P. and Paulsson, J. 2021. The sliding scale between usufruct and ownership: The example of Swedish multi-family housing, Land, 10, 311.
Granath Hansson, A. 2021. Planning for single-family housing: Swedish trends. In Papers in Honour of Thomas Kalbro on the occasion of his 70th birthday, Ed. Granath Hansson, A. Stockholm: KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
Granath Hansson, A. 2020. Meeting a growing homelessness: How could three Swedish affordable housing initiatives be analyzed from perspectives of social and economic sustainability? Nordic Journal of Surveying and Real Estate Research, 15(1), 7-37.
Granath Hansson, A. 2020. Land models for affordable housing: Drivers in the housing and planning systems in Sweden. In Methods and Concepts of Land Management: Diversity, Changes and New Approaches, European Academy of Land Use and Development, Eds. Hepperle, E., Paulsson, J., Maliene, V., Mansberger, R., Auzins, A., Valciukiene, J.
Granath Hansson, A. 2020. Bostadssociala utredningar då och nu: fokus och förutsättningar. (State inquiries on social policy connected to housing now and then: Focus and conditions) In Dedicated to Efficiency: Festskrift för Hans Lind, Eds. Granath Hansson, A. & Kopsch, F. Lund: Lunds Tekniska Högskola.
Granath Hansson, A. 2019. City Strategies for Affordable Housing: The approaches of Berlin, Hamburg, Stockholm, and Gothenburg. International Journal of Housing Policy, DOI 10.1080/19491247.2017.1278581.
Granath Hansson, A. 2019. Inclusionary housing policies in Germany and Sweden: The importance of norms and institutions. Nordic Journal of Surveying and Real Estate Research, 14 (1), 7-28.
Granath Hansson, A. and Lundgren, B. 2018. Defining social housing: A discussion on the suitable criteria. Housing, Theory and Society, DOI:10.1080/14036096.2018.1459826.
Granath Hansson, A. 2018. Combatting the housing shortage through institutional reform: The parallel cases of Germany and Sweden. Zeitschrift für Geodäsie, Geoinformation und Landmanagement, 143 (2), 93-99.
Granath Hansson, A. 2017. Promoting planning for housing development: What can Sweden learn from Germany? Land Use Policy, 64:470-478.
Granath Hansson, A. 2017. Boosting affordable housing supply: Could type approval of serially produced housing be a piece in the puzzle? Zeitschrift für Immobilienökonomie, 3 (1), 49-68.
Reports
Rohrer, L. & Granath Hansson, A. 2024. Planning around remote work, Nordregio report 2024:24.
Granath Hansson, A. & Guðmundsdóttir, H. 2024. Remote Work in Smaller Towns: Possibilities and uncertainties, Nordregio report 2024:5.
Granath Hansson, A. & Ahlinder, E. 2023. Hur kan förutsättningarna för att fler ska kunna bo i socialt hållbara bogemenskaper förbättras? En litteraturgenomgång av potentiella initiativtagare, samarbetspartners och legala förhållanden (How could prerequisites for inclusive, socially sustainable collaborative housing be improved? A literature review focusing on potential initiators, cooperation partners and legal issues) Stockholm: Forum för Bostadsforskning Stockholm.
Granath Hansson, A. 2021. Krav på bostäder med lägre hyra och sociala kontrakt i nyproduktionen (Demands for lower rents and social contracts in newly-built housing). KTH Royal Institute of Technology, report TRITA-ABE-RPT-2135.
Granath Hansson, A. 2020. How could new-build be made affordable to lower-income groups? In Tunström (Ed.) Building affordable homes: Challenges and solutions in the Nordic Region, Nordregio report 2020:2.
Granath Hansson, A. 2018. Bostadspolitiska instrument i fyra europeiska länder: Nyproducerade bostäder som låg- och medelinkomsttagare kan efterfråga (Housing policy instruments in four European countries: Newly-built housing that low and mid-income households can afford), Stockholm: Bostad 2030 (Arena idé).
Granath Hansson, A. 2016. Typgodkännande av serietillverkade flerbostadshus i Tyskland: lägesrapport december 2016 (Type approval of serial multi-family housing in Germany: Status report by December 2016). Stockholm: KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
Other academic articles and book reviews
Granath Hansson, A. 2023. It is all about the mix and the balance: On Shane Phillips’ ‘The Affordable City: Strategies for Putting Housing within Reach (and Keeping It There)’, Dialogues in Urban Research, 1(2). Book review.
Granath Hansson, A. 2015. The Planning Process in Sweden: Current debate and reform proposals, Kart og Plan, 3/2015.
Dissertation
Granath Hansson, A. 2017. Institutional prerequisites for affordable housing development: A comparative study of Germany and Sweden. (Doctoral thesis). Stockholm: KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
Related Research Projects
Ongoing
Nordic thematic groups 2025-2027 LOCALCARE – Strategic municipal leadership for active aging and care in the local community Rules and tools – safeguarding neighbouring green space for human health and well-beingFinished
Nordic thematic groups 2021-2024 Land policies in Europe Pre-study: Nordic tripartite forum on structural change and the green transition A common Nordic labour market 70 years and beyond (70 ys and beyond) Transnor – Implementation of the Just Transition: Regional Planning in Upper Norrland Early career mobility in the Nordic Region Small Town Attractiveness Strategic Housing Collaborative housing Remote work and multilocality post-pandemicRelated Publications
Planning around remote work
Remote Work in Smaller Towns: Possibilities and uncertainties
Kan bogemenskaper bli en möjlighet för fler? – Vilka möjligheter och hinder finns i den vetenskapliga litteraturen?
Hur kan förutsättningarna för att fler ska kunna bo i socialt hållbara bogemenskaper förbättras?
Building affordable homes: Challenges and solutions in the Nordic Region
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