Since the 1990s, significant changes affecting financial arrangements have permeated both the Dutch and Austrian system of social housing provision. Potentially, these changes could have influenced the role and performance of social landlords in both countries. This paper explores the actual impact of these changes in terms of their social performance and production outcomes. In doing so, it brings together two complimentary perspectives: one examining the institutional developmental processes of regulation, supervision and financing and the second focusing on the organisational level. Following an outline of the broad shifts encountered by providers, this paper takes a closer look at day to day influences currently mediating the development priorities and outcomes. It focuses on a number of housing outcomes in terms of production levels, tenure outcomes and affordability. It also postulates the causal mechanisms which may have generated differences between each case by examining both the wider institutional environment and the day to day constraints affecting the project development and the portfolio management process.