Displaying desire and distinction in housing

The article discusses the significance of cultural capital for the understanding of the field of housing in contemporary Britain. It explores the relationship between housing and the position of individuals in social space mapped out by means of a multiple correspondence analysis. It considers the material aspects of housing and the changing contexts that are linked to the creation and display of desire for social position and distinction expressed in talk about home decoration as personal expression and individuals' ideas of a `dream house'. It is based on an empirical investigation of taste and lifestyle using nationally representative survey data and qualitative interviews. The article shows both that personal resources and the imagination of home are linked to levels of cultural capital, and that rich methods of investigation are required to grasp the significance of these normally invisible assets to broaden the academic understanding of the field of housing in contemporary culture

Housing

Entry for the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics on Housing covering housing markets and zoning regulations.

Illinois Affordable Housing Primer

This document addresses many of the basic issues involved in affordable housing. It provides the reader with an understanding of both the issues and a variety of the solutions being implemented. The primer includes the following sections:What is Affordable Housing?Affordable Housing TerminologyThe Growing Illinois Housing CrisisAffordable Housing Initiatives Making a Difference Across the NationAffordable Housing Work

Upper Sioux Indian Community Trip Report: Assessment of Mold and Moisture Conditions

Paul Francisco from the Building Research Council (BRC) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Robert Nemeth from Magna Systems, Inc. conducted a site visit at the Upper Sioux Indian Community Housing Department (USICHD) on April21-23, 2004. The USICHD administers the housing program for the Upper Sioux Indian Community. The site visit provided technical assistance to the housing department in assessing mold and moisture conditions in housing units. This report summarizes activities and issues addressed while on site. A detailed analysis of findings and recommendations is found in PART II: Upper Sioux Indian Community Housing Department Technical Housing Assessment Report: Examining Mold and Moisture Conditions of Homes for the Upper Sioux Indian Community.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Native American Program

Health effects of housing improvements

Despite long-established associations between housing conditions and health, the evidence linking housing improvements to changes in health outcomes is still sparse. Our latest briefing paper, Health Effects of Housing Improvements, reports on changes in physical and mental health outcomes related to housing improvements undertaken in social housing Glasgow since 2003 as part of investment agreed as part of the stock transfer to bring stock up to the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS). The objective of the research was to establish whether there were any differences in the change in physical and mental health outcomes over time between those who did or did not receive four different types of housing improvements. The briefing paper looks at the effects of each of four housing improvements on physical and mental health. It also examines the effects of multiple improvements and of time since the improvements in order to investigate whether the effects change over time. Our findings relating the health improvements following housing improvements are modest. However, while housing improvements may not lead manifest improvements in individual health over the short term but improved and maintained housing stock should lead to longer term health improvements at the population level. Although housing providers improve homes with the expectation of health gains they also aim to improve residential satisfaction and quality of life more generally. Our study highlights the central importance of employment to the health of residents in deprived areas, and supports a case for more attention to be paid to employment as part of regeneration, whether through economic, employability or health-improvement measures

Challenges in public housing provision in the post independence era in Nigeria

This study investigated the contextual and organizational challenges in public housing provision in Nigeria in the post independence era. It was motivated by dearth of empirical studies on organizational challenges in public housing in this country. Using data derived from a survey of fifteen public housing agencies in southern Nigeria, the study found that scarcity of housing finance, lack of consistency and continuity in housing policy formulation and poor implementation strategies, unfavorable political environment and declining population of tradesmen in the construction industry were key contextual challenges militating against public housing provision. In addition, low level of inter-agencies collaborations, poor staff motivation and rewarding system as well as inadequate operational equipment and vehicles were responsible for the inability of public housing agencies to deliver on their housing mandate in the study area. The paper suggests that stable polity, consistency in housing policies and programs and capacity building in public housing agencies through public-private partnerships are needed to improve on the quantity and quality of public housing in Nigeri

Supportive Housing in Illinois: A Wise Investment

This study reports on 177 supportive housing residents around Illinois, comparing their use of publicly-funded services two years before entering supportive housing to two years after entry. Data were collected from Medicaid-reimbursed services, state mental health hospitals, substance use treatment, state prisons, and various county jails and hospitals. The study found an overall cost savings of over $850,000 in the two years after entry into supportive housing, a little over$2,400 per person annually. There was a drastic reduction in state prison, county jail, and state mental health hospital overnight stays. There was a shift from using expensive inpatient services before housing (nursing homes, inpatient care, state mental health hospitals) to less expensive outpatient services after entry into housing (outpatient medical and psychiatric care, case management). Supportive Housing in Illinois: A Wise Investment was researched and written by the Heartland Alliance Mid-America Institute on Poverty with support from the Illinois Supportive Housing Providers Association and the Corporation for Supportive Housing

Housing Initiatives in Illinois: Many Successes, A Long Road Ahead

A CCH policy brief that examines housing initiatives in the state of Illinois including: creating and preserving housing for people with the lowest incomes; removing barriers to developing affordable housing in the suburbs; ending discrimination and promoting open access to housing; and removing barriers to developing affordable housin

Addressing housing needs in minimising the problems of post conflict housing reconstruction

Depleted human and social capital, displacement of people, destruction of property, weakened institutions and ruined economy are some of the legacies of conflicts. Within this context, post conflict reconstruction contributes to overcome the legacies of conflict through reactivating the development process that has been disrupted by the conflict. Among the post conflict reconstruction interventions, post conflict housing reconstruction is paramount important as it contributes to development and peace through restoring the economic and social life of conflict affected people. Despite the importance, the success of post conflict housing reconstruction is hindered by a number of problems such as lack of strategies to address the unique challenges faced by vulnerable households, lack of involvement of local people, lack of use of local building material and technology, lack of local economic development, lack of community linkages, lack of cultural and local consideration, overlooked socio-economic conditions of occupants, standardised housing models, housing models imported from different cultures, lack of beneficiary consultation, poor performance of agencies, bribery and corruptions and lack of post occupancy evaluation. If not properly managed, these issues lead to hinder the success of post conflict housing reconstruction and its contribution to the development and peace. This paper argues that lack of concern on housing needs has directly or indirectly given rise for most of these issues through a comprehensive literature review on post conflict housing reconstruction and housing needs. The paper establishes the link between the problems of housing reconstruction and lack of addressing housing needs. Accordingly, it concludes that adequate housing measures provide a general guideline in addressing housing needs and addressing such needs leads to minimise the problems of post conflict housing reconstruction

Frontier Housing: Replacement Housing with "Manufactured Housing Done RightS"(TM)

This report is a case study of a scalable replacement program for substandard housing, particularly pre-1976 manufactured housing, developed by Frontier Housing, a member of the NeighborWorks(R) Network based in Morehead, Kentucky. Frontier Housing's Manufactured Housing Done Right(TM) model offers a real opportunity to improve living conditions, reduce energy consumption and protect the environment. Decades of debate have not found a more cost-effective alternative for providing single family homeownership for low-income people living in the vast rural areas of the country