Credibility of legalization: Illegally constructed buildings in Serbia

The paper analyses the credibility of the legalization policies regarding illegally constructed buildings (ICBs) in Serbia in the socialist and post-socialist periods. It introduces the conceptual framework of the credibility thesis concerning informal institutions in an empirical examination of the credibility of legalization policy measures in Serbia. The analysis identifies the main causes of vast illegal construction, and the types and credibility of planning measures and legalization policies, using the Credibility thesis as a breakthrough in planning practice. The findings show the failure of planning and the non-credibility of legalization policies, as well as the survival of ICBs as an autonomous form of property rights.