Contemporary Housing Research Articles

Housing pathways, aspirations and preferences of young adults within increasing urban density

There is growing recognition within housing preference studies that younger housing consumers are more amenable to compact dwellings. Yet, there remains uncertainty around the drivers of these preferences. In Auckland, the development of a spatial plan emphasizing intensification has attracted opposition from residents, reinforcing a notion that compact housing is largely unappealing. Utilizing a housing pathways approach, we question this notion through examining the housing narratives of Generation Y, a cohort whose preferences are largely ignored in this debate and poorly understood within housing research. This paper highlights the influence of past experiences on attitudes to changing urban environments, providing several themes related to housing experiences that have the potential to influence preferences. We conclude that a process of ‘acclimatisation’ to density is likely as Generation Y become exposed to higher-density housing. However, to encourage positive experiences, compact dwellings must attend to the dynamic nature of contemporary housing pathways and provide quality housing, located where young people aspire to live.

Understanding changing housing aspirations: a review of the evidence

This article reviews the literature on changing housing aspirations and expectations in contemporary housing systems. It argues that there is a conceptual and definitional gap in relation to the term ‘housing aspirations’, as distinct from expectations, preferences, choices and needs. The article sets out working definitions of these terms, before discussing the evidence on changing housing (and related) systems. Emerging research has begun to consider whether trends such as declining homeownership, affordability concerns and precarious labour systems across a range of countries are fundamentally changing individuals’ aspirations for the forms of housing they aim to access at different stages of their lives. Whilst much of the research into housing aspirations has been considered in terms of tenure, and homeownership in particular, this article suggests that research needs to move beyond tenure and choice frameworks, to consider the range of dimensions that shape aspirations, from the political economy and the State to socialization and individuals’ dispositions for housing.

System fragility analysis of roof cladding and trusses for Australian contemporary housing subjected to wind uplift

This paper describes a reliability-based fragility method to evaluate the wind damage to roof cladding and trusses for contemporary houses in non-cyclonic regions of Australia. The fragility assessment considers roof sheeting loss and roof truss failure due to overloading of cladding-to-batten, batten-to-rafter/truss and rafter/truss-to-wall connectors that are typically the ‘weakest links’ of a roof system under wind uplift pressure. The wind fragility herein is expressed by the mean extent of roof sheeting loss and roof truss failures as a function of gust wind speed. Monte Carlo Simulation in conjunction with a finite element approach are employed to carry out the wind fragility assessment, which enables the probabilistic characterization of spatially varying wind uplift pressure, connection resistances, structural response, failure progression of roof connections and internal pressure evolution with increasing roof sheeting loss. The proposed fragility method was illustrated on representative contemporary housing built in Brisbane and Melbourne with complex hip-roof geometries and corrugated metal roof sheeting. It was found that, for the gust wind speed corresponding to a 500-year return period, the mean proportion of roof sheeting loss and roof truss failures is negligible for the representative contemporary house built in Melbourne, whereas considerable roof damage is predicted for those built in Brisbane when windward dominant openings exist.

Housing Squats as “Educational Sites of Resistance”: The Process of Movement Social Base Formation in the Struggle for the House

AbstractThis paper aims to contribute to the scholarly work on the internal dynamics of contemporary housing movements. In particular, it explores the spatial strategies through which squat inhabitants change the configuration of the squat to turn an abandoned building into a house for multiple families. The main argument is that these strategies, requiring horizontal participation and solidarity, catalyse the transformation of a sum of people dispossessed of the house into a collective, political subject. Therefore, the author proposes to analyse housing squats as “educational sites of resistance”. The findings come from the author's participant observation of Rome's housing movement organisation Coordinamento Cittadino di Lotta per la casa. In addition to providing empirical knowledge, the paper aims to offer inputs for investigating to what extent the process of politicisation is shaped by the space and what constitute the peculiarities of a so‐recomposed collective subject.

Changes in Functional and Spatial Layouts of Polish Single-Family Houses

The article presents the evolution of functional and spatial layouts of single-family houses in Poland, with particular emphasis on the functions of a contemporary house. Singlefamily housing constitutes a significant part of the construction market in Poland. The way of forming functions in single-family buildings in the historical cycle has characteristic features resulting from the culture of the society in a given period. The functional and spatial layout of each object is an important part of its architecture. Architecture is the art of organizing space in order to satisfy the material and spiritual needs of man. Building is an essential part of this organization. When we describe the architecture of a building, we mean its form – construction of the body, function, structure and detail, texture and colour. However, a casual observer primarily perceives the appearance of the building – its body and the way it is finished. The construction of the building is usually hidden, invisible to the observer. The investor and future user most often put in the first place the functional layout. The estates of single-family houses are an important part of the modern city landscape. Such estates may consist of free-standing, semi-detached, terraced and atrium buildings. They are developed on the basis of individual projects designed for a specific user, or based on repetitive projects, selected by the investor in cooperation with the architect, from project catalogues of various architectural studios. At the same time, the developer’s estates are being designed, offering ready-made houses, which the future user chooses without the participation of the designer. The most interesting in terms of the functional arrangement and spatial solutions are the projects of unique houses located in atypical situations, both within cities and on their outskirts. In each of these cases, the future user – investor in a decisive way draws attention to the functional layout of the building. The customs prevailing in society, the structure of the family and the style of family life in a given historical period had decisive influence on shaping the functional and spatial systems of single-family buildings. At present, in the era of globalization present in all areas of life, there have been significant changes in the way of life of the family that affect the functional and spatial layout of single-family houses. Global standards in creating the function of buildings are thus being adopted.

Assessment of Quality of Living Environment Based On Interdisciplinary Research Methods - Selected Examples

Like most European cities of similar size, Cracow is growing dynamically. Newly created objects are not only of public importance but also housing, whose standards due to the architectural form, technologies and finishing materials are increasingly high. However, spatial solutions do not necessarily allow to assess new estates as high-quality housing areas. The article concerns the analysis of contemporary housing estates with regard to sociological issues, which is a vital supplement to basic urban research. It allows obtaining opinions on how residents perceive their place of residence, what elements they appreciate the most and which require corrective measures. The interview creates an opportunity to determine the needs of the residents of the housing estates and to identify factors affecting their sense of comfort, safety and satisfaction with their place of residence. The key objective of the study is to check the sociological and urban research methods for assessing the quality of the housing environment on the example of the Chełmoński housing estate in Cracow. Moreover, the author also wanted to obtain the residents’ opinion on the area in which they have lived for several years – also taking into account changes in architectural and urban solutions. For this reason, the tests were performed twice. The first interviews were carried out in 2015, while the second, three years later. Such methodology created the possibility of making comparisons regarding different opinions of the residents as well as transformations introduced in a residential environment. The main research tool included a survey containing questions requiring either a detailed description or short answers-yes/no, I have no opinion. The choice of the test method resulted from its wide range of topics because the housing environment and its quality research are a broad issue covering the subject matter of many fields of science, such as architecture, urban planning, sociology, and psychology. The results of the conducted research indicated that the most important factors associated with the immediate surroundings are contact with nature, close access to local services, including shops and medical facilities, educational facilities and recreational areas. Due to the analysis, the research results may be useful for the units managing the housing estates, for the local government authorities, planners and urban planners deciding on introducing changes and imposing guidelines in the spatial structure of the cities. They can also lead to reflection and change in the behaviour of investors, developers and architects who have an impact on emerging housing estates. The research methods used in work are universal and can be applied to housing areas regardless of their location.

Circular Plans in Contemporary Housing Architecture

Residential buildings on the central plan are not constructed too often, however they are a part of architecture since prehistoric times. The aim of this article was to study already constructed contemporary single-family houses on circular plans (and circle derivatives) to create and systematize the typology of such buildings and to determine the methods for shaping the space of residential interiors as well as to investigate the reasons for using such a building shape. The study was carried out by analysing technical drawings, plans and sections as well as photographic materials. 24 buildings constructed in the last 8 years (after 2010) were examined. During the study, 7 basic types of buildings were defined, distinguished on the basis of the manner of their layout arrangement (1. Circle, 2. Deformed circle, 3. Circle with cut-out, 4. Circle with add-on, 5. Multiple circles, 6. Negative, 7. Arc, and also 4 ways of organizing the living space (O Orthogonal, R Radial, C Circle in circle, NP No partition). The following features of residential buildings on circular plans were noticed: most of the examined buildings are houses with a large living area, mostly located within the landscape or suburban area with low development density, the main reasons for using the plans in the form of a circle in the examined cases were: maximum outdoor view, fitting the building in the surrounding landscape and saving energy.

The Making of Home and History The Revival of the Fin de Siècle Architecture

ABSTRACTIn this text, I will discuss how history is used and understood in different contemporary contexts regarding the domestic architecture of the fin de siècle (approx. 1880-1915). The focus is on apartment housing and my examples are all found in central Stockholm. I have used an ethnographical method with personal stories and experiences as my main focus while conducting interviews with people living in apartments in houses originally built around 1900. To place the interviews in a broader context they have been analyzed in relation to contemporary housing advertisements. In the first part of the article fin de siècle architecture is discussed as a coherent material style, modified to modern needs and dreams and given the function of a sign of among other things history, quality and status, legitimizing new modern lifestyles. In the second part, the use of history is considered as one among many factors in the project of homemaking and as being a possibility to transform yourself and your surroundings into better and more beautiful and interesting versions.

Group form reconsidered: Physicality and humanity of collective spaces

In 1964, Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki presented the need for investigation in housing collective form. The need was explained through his sensitivity towards the dynamic change of society and simultaneous inadequacy of architectural static and fragmented respond. This paper presents the contemporary view on the theory of collective form and its investigation into why and how the group of buildings stands together. It brings forward the need for renewed architectural focus on group form, one of Maki's collective form types, and the social and human reasoning of design decisions. The theory of linkages in group form is related to more recent sociospatial analytical theories and interpreted as an analytical tool for understanding housing morphologies, configurations, and its social capacity of group form. It is proposed that the morphological and configurational approach can be used in combination for reading and understanding the historical and contemporary housing ensembles and their relation to an urban whole. The aim of the theoretical research is the identification of the analytical framework and design principles of group form based on architectural and configurational elements and their relations, as socially and culturally relevant.

Çağdaş Konutun Olay Örgüsüne Disiplinlerötesi Yaklaşım: İstanbul, Viyana, Amsterdam

Çağdaş Konutun Olay Örgüsüne Disiplinlerötesi Yaklaşım: İstanbul, Viyana, Amsterdam

Tropical Nusantara’s Contemporary House for Liveable Environment

The tropical house has been discussed in many journals invarious architectural perspective. Tropical Nusantara’s ContemporaryHouse is an alternative style in Indonesia as the livable environment in thepresent. This paper seeks to raise more specific points about tropicalNusantara’s house with topics covered, such as identity style of our house;tropical Nusantara’s house characters; tropical Nusantara’s house designcreations as well as cultural knowledge in habitat. Hopefully, this papercan provide an alternative thinking about the tropical Nusantara’s house, not only as a habitable space but also can provide a comfortable dwellingand give satisfaction to settlement.

Ajalooline müüt Jaan Kaplinski draamas „Neljakuningapäev“ [Historical Myth in Jaan Kaplinski’s "Day of the Four Kings"

Ajalooline naidend voimaldab end žanrina erinevalt tolgendada – nii sužeepohise rekonstruktsiooni kui ka kaasaegse allegooriana. 1960.–1970. aastate eesti draamas kasutasid mitmed autorid umberutleva moistukone vormi, et kasitleda teemasid, mille otsene valjendamine olnuks keeruline voi isegi voimatu. Uht kujukamat naidet pakub siin Jaan Kaplinski draama „Neljakuningapaev“, milles 1343. aasta Jurioo ulestousu sundmused on asetatud kaasaegse suvilapeo konteksti. Tekkinud paralleel osutus sedavord konekaks, et naidendi esmalavastus Tallinna Draamateatris 1977. aastal peaaegu maha vaikiti ning sisuliselt isegi keelustati. Kumme aastat hiljem Eesti NSV Riiklikus Noorsooteatris lavale joudnud „Neljakuningapaeva“ uustolgendus, mis lahtus uksnes valisest sundmusekujutusest, ei omandanud aga esmalavastusele ligilahedastki tahendust. Seega eeldab ajalooline muudidraama tolgendajatelt nii allegooriale sobivat kunstilist nagemust kui ka selle kontseptuaalselt veenvat lahtimotestamist. Votmesonad: muudidraama, Jurioo ulestous, Jaan Kaplinski, ajalooline muut, allegooriline draama ----------- This paper examines the phenomenon of historical myth, presented in the form of a piece of theatre. Jaan Kaplinski’s historical and allegorical drama Day of the Four Kings is presented as a prime example. The play is based on a well-known historical event, namely the brutal murder of ancient Estonian chiefs by German conquerors during the rebellion of 1343 (St. George’s Night Rebellion). As Estonian theatre researcher Piret Kruuspere has noted, during the 1970s, re-tellings of national history on the Estonian theatre stage were clothed in metaphors, allusions and secret codes – Aesopian language. In addition to this secret code, the author of Day of the Four Kings used a kind of doubling, placing historical events into the setting of a contemporary house party. This change of perspective causes some degree of alienation as well as amplifies the essential allegorical message of the drama. Representing the real run of historical events, the play is effectively communicating with a contemporary audience, dealing with the problems and themes closely connected with contemporary society. In addition to its allegorical meaning, the play underlines the importance of maintaining ethnical and archaic values and warns against sacrificing these in return for short-time utilitarian purposes. The allegory of the play was even too obvious, so that the first production of the play (in 1977) was practically banned by the official powers of Soviet Estonia. Contrary to the first stage performance of the play, the second attempt – which took place a decade later – was an unfortunate example of the disappearance of the mythical dimension of the drama. This kind of poor production was no longer able to overcome the historical-cultural and national psychological contradictions inherent in the play. The analysis is mainly based on reviews of the play from the period as well as the social and cultural conditions in existence when the theatrical versions were staged. It is easy to conclude that during the process of producing this kind of stage play, it is far more fruitful to accent all kind of allusions and allegorical metaphors than to simply follow the formal development of the external plot. If the mythical dimension disappears, the message of the play loses its essential meaning. Keywords: mythology, mythical drama, St. George’s Night Rebellion, Jaan Kaplinski, historical myth, national myth, deconstruction, allegorical drama

Eleven Ways Demographic and Economic Change Is Reframing American Housing Policy

ABSTRACTIn this article we identify 11 contemporary housing market and policy trends that will frame the next 10 years of federal housing policy. In each case, we review the relevant numbers before summarizing the policy issues raised by those realities. In some cases, these issues prompt specific policy recommendations. In other cases, they point to the need for greater research and debate.

A Study on the Preference of the Five Cardinal Colors in Contemporary Housing

A Study on the Preference of the Five Cardinal Colors in Contemporary Housing

PRIORITIZING THE PHYSICAL SECURITY ELEMENTS OF GATED COMMUNITY HOUSING USING THE ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP)

The concept of gated community housing is a feature of contemporary housing development. Housing developers promote this concept through an emphasis on security in gated housing. House owners today favour fenced-in residences, not only for their homes, but also for the entire housing development, including recreational areas and other facilities. The aim of this study is to prioritize the elements of physical security in a gated community housing development. The methodology employed a quantitative approach using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) in ascertaining the weightage for each element deemed important in the planning of secure gated community housing, with focus on the elements of access, fencing, CCTV installation, lighting, guardhouse and landscape, which are the principal elements that serve to enforce security in the protected community. The results of this study showed that two principal elements, namely access to the property (entry/exit points) and protective fencing, were deemed the most important in providing security in gated community housing. Accordingly, these aspects should be accorded particular attention in the planning of gated communities in the future and be factored into the strategy to enhance security.Gated community housing and guarded neighbourhoods employing such a strategy would be quite effective in providing security to residents.

PRIORITIZING THE PHYSICAL SECURITY ELEMENTS OF GATED COMMUNITY HOUSING USING THE ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP)

The concept of gated community housing is a feature of contemporary housing development. Housing developers promote this concept through an emphasis on security in gated housing. House owners today favour fenced-in residences, not only for their homes, but also for the entire housing development, including recreational areas and other facilities. The aim of this study is to prioritize the elements of physical security in a gated community housing development. The methodology employed a quantitative approach using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) in ascertaining the weightage for each element deemed important in the planning of secure gated community housing, with focus on the elements of access, fencing, CCTV installation, lighting, guardhouse and landscape, which are the principal elements that serve to enforce security in the protected community. The results of this study showed that two principal elements, namely access to the property (entry/exit points) and protective fencing, were deemed the most important in providing security in gated community housing. Accordingly, these aspects should be accorded particular attention in the planning of gated communities in the future and be factored into the strategy to enhance security.Gated community housing and guarded neighbourhoods employing such a strategy would be quite effective in providing security to residents.

Waffle structure optimization in terms of energy efficiency and spatial geometry for a single family house

Sustainable house design represents an integrated complex process, with form rationalization that is to be considered in the early project stages, in order to achieve a set of goals that range from aesthetic and spatial qualities to structural optimization and energy efficiency. Recent research directions in the field of building physics, with regard to the energy efficiency component, focus mostly on environmental aspects, such as carbon footprint reduction. Another contemporary issue that must be addressed concerns establishing a balance between overall energy performance and a comfortable indoor environment. From an architectural standpoint, the passive design principles can adequately respond to the above mentioned issues and have been the focus of specialists during the last years. This paper presents a set of form optimization strategies implemented in the conceptual design stage of a contemporary house. The main objectives of the study focus on energy efficiency maximization and rational use of local resources, without compromising aesthetic criteria.

Natural Ventilation Design Attributes Application Effect on Indoor Natural Ventilation Performance of a Double Storey Single Unit Residential Building

: In establishing a good indoor thermal condition, air movement is one of the important parameter to be considered to provide indoor fresh air for occupants. Due to the public awareness on environment impact, people has been increasingly attentive to passive design in achieving good condition of indoor building ventilation. Throughout case studies, significant building attributes were found giving effect on building indoor natural ventilation performance. The studies were categorized under vernacular houses, contemporary houses with vernacular element and contemporary houses. The indoor air movement of every each spaces in the houses were compared with the outdoor air movement surrounding the houses to indicate the space’s indoor natural ventilation performance. Analysis found the wind catcher element appears to be the most significant attribute to contribute most to indoor natural ventilation. Wide opening was also found to be significant especially those with louvers. Whereas it is also interesting to find indoor layout design is also significantly giving impact on the performance. The finding indicates that a good indoor natural ventilation is not only dictated by having proper openings at proper location of a building, but also on how the incoming air movement is managed throughout the interior spaces by proper layout. Understanding on the air pressure distribution caused by indoor windward and leeward side is important in directing the air flow to desired spaces in producing an overall good indoor natural ventilation performance.

Comparative housing, urban crisis and political economy: an ethnographically based ‘long view’ from Auckland, Singapore and Berlin

This paper follows a call for a ‘long view’ perspective on contemporary housing problems and policy. It applies this longitudinal lens to a multi-city comparative ethnographical study that investigates and relates place-specific and common trajectories and policies in regard to contemporary urban housing. By comparing Auckland, Singapore and Berlin from a heterodox political economy perspective, it demonstrates how contemporary challenges and proposed solutions over housing have deep-seated historical and geographical roots that are usually overlooked. It suggests that comprehending current housing issues as cumulative effects of developments and policy (non)-action taken in the past, and relating and evaluating those constitutive trajectories and transformations across (disparate) cities, current academic and policy debates can be enriched and deepened. One lesson is that ‘learning from the past’ may be a more promising crisis response than nowadays’ politically fetishised learning via global best practice and spatially mobilised policy.

Wellness and illness: the aftermath of urban mass housing in Lagos, Nigeria

ABSTRACTMass housing policy and an attendant population increase play a vital role in the socio-economic profile of Lagos. The article, using data from mass housing projects, explains the effects of these projects on intra-urban dynamics and the implications in Lagos. The pace of urban growth is increasing, and there is an absence of supporting infrastructures. The areas where populations are decreasing happen to be where contemporary housing construction is concentrated. Therefore, programmes aimed at providing housing and improving quality of life should, as a priority, deal with factors affecting population growth and spatial distribution.