The City of Philadelphia operates an initiative that requires owners of vacant properties to keep them in a neat and presentable condition. Its aim? To fight crime and limit drug use. And it really does work; problematic neighbourhoods have seen significant improvement.

Walker’s Court in Soho still has a seedy, Dickensian charm and red lights in the windows. But a new development is set to change all that. Soho Estates are pushing the prostitutes out and bringing the developers in. But will this latest wave of gentrification be welcome?

1000 Dean is the epitome of cool Brooklyn, combining office spaces with an artisanal food and beer hall. But with real estate investors playing a vital role, this hipster hub isn’t another product of community-led gentrification. Can a cool neighbourhood really be created in a matter of months?

In the past five years, 210,000 people in São Paulo swapped their houses for flats. The idea of buying into an estate is increasingly appealing to people across backgrounds, ages and classes, but why are they choosing to make their homes in condos rather than traditional houses?