Spatial and multidimensional analysis of the Dutch housing market using the Kohonen Map and GIS

In this work the idea is to analyse general spatially identifiable housing market related data on Dutch districts (wijken) with the SOM (Kohonen Map) and a GIS. One of the authors has earlier carried out purely visual SOM analysis of that data, where patterns formed on a larger ‘map’ (the output matrix of the SOM) were used as a basis for classification of the Dutch housing market segments on a nationwide level. This way the SOM was used as a method for exploratory data analysis. Now we attempt a more rigorous method of determining the segmentation using a smaller ‘map’ size, in order to be able to export the SOM-output directly to a GIS-system to analyse it further. Two technical issues interest us: one, the robustness of the results – do the five basic housing market segments found in the earlier analysis prevail (we call these urban, urban periphery, pseudo-rural, traditional, and low-income segments); and two, which classes fit the real situation better and which worse, when using the RMSE for a measure of goodness? We also keep an eye on policy implications and aim at comparing our classifications with the ‘actual’ ones used in official discourse.

The Measurement and Analysis of Housing Preference and Choice

What are the current trends in housing? Is my planned project commercially viable? What should be my marketing and advertisement strategies? These are just some of the questions real estate agents, landlords and developers ask researchers to answer. But to find the answers, researchers are faced with a wide variety of methods that measure housing preferences and choices. To select and value a valid research method, one needs a well-structured overview of the methods that are used in housing preference and housing choice research. This comprehensive introduction to this field offers just such an overview. It discusses and compares numerous methods, detailing the potential limitation of each one, and it reaches beyond methodology, illustrating how thoughtful consideration of methods and techniques in research can help researchers and other professionals to deliver products and services that are more in line with residents’ needs

The Measurement and Analysis of Housing Preference and Choice

What are the current trends in housing? Is my planned project commercially viable? What should be my marketing and advertisement strategies? These are just some of the questions real estate agents, landlords and developers ask researchers to answer. But to find the answers, researchers are faced with a wide variety of methods that measure housing preferences and choices. To select and value a valid research method, one needs a well-structured overview of the methods that are used in housing preference and housing choice research. This comprehensive introduction to this field offers just such an overview. It discusses and compares numerous methods, detailing the potential limitation of each one, and it reaches beyond methodology, illustrating how thoughtful consideration of methods and techniques in research can help researchers and other professionals to deliver products and services that are more in line with residents’ needs

Can Red Pay for Blue? Methods to Estimate the Added Value of Water in Residential Environments

As a result of climate changes, more land is now needed in the Netherlands for water retention in towns and the countryside. Recently, this perceived need has resulted in new forms of water management and spatial planning strategies. Multi-functional land use is an option such as housing in combination with retention lakes. Some argue that the market potential is high and that water has an added value in residential environments. This added value could be used to compensate for non-profitable investments such as the creation of lakes. The key question is how to value this amenity. It is argued that non-economists often assume that a valuation is just a technique. The authors challenge this by presenting an overview of economic perspectives as well as techniques. A literature review reveals the main valuation perspectives and suggests estimated added values of 10‐15% for the seashore, 5‐10% for river locations (streams), and 5% for lakes.