The speculative bubble and the production of residential space in the United States

Abstract

In the last months it has been reported a global house speculative bubble. The present work intends to reflect upon the production and consumption of space in the merchandise form, specially to North American conjuncture, much beyond the effective demand. This study relates the actual phenomenon to the recent history of capitalist development, the exhaustion of fordist regime accumulation, the transition to the flexible production and the consequent contradictions manifested in the separation between the production of goods and services and the generation of fictitious capital. It is emphasized here the importance of the current production of space, as an expression of fictitious capital, relating to the needs of the productive spheres of global economy.