Characteristics of multifamily housing development in the post-socialist period: Case study, the city of Nis

Abstract

The paper deals with characteristics of multifamily housing development (MHD) in specific conditions of post-socialist transition. Multi-layered political, institutional and socio-economic changes have influenced the change in the urban structure of cities, including housing areas. Time distance of thirty years from the beginning of transition in Serbia, gives us a good position to monitor and fully understand the effects of changes, including the last and longest-term phase of transitional process - urban changes. The development of multifamily housing is examined on the example of the city of Nis, a typical socialist industrial city that underwent dramatic changes in the post-socialist period and represent a good testing ground for transitional changes and their effects. The goal of the paper is to recognize different types of multifamily housing and the transitional changes that led to certain type of development and their spatial distribution in the city. The research suggests that multifamily housing development is especially influenced by privatization in the initial phase of transition, restitution in the later phase of transition, changing role of public and private sector in housing development, as well as changes in urban planning.