The Regional Housing Executive of the West Midlands Regional Assembly commissioned a literature review to identify how housing development both within and outside the Major Urban Areas (MUAs) of the region could support the goal of Urban Renaissance, a key aim of the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). The purpose of the research was to explore the role of housing development across the region in generating urban renaissance. The underlying assumption, or perhaps hope, was that a renaissance of the major urban areas in the West Midlands would help reduce the outflow of working households into the more rural parts of the region and at the same time assist disadvantaged households by providing both affordable housing and employment.