...INTRODCTION Housing is both a social good, providing core security for families, neighbourhoods, societies and communities and an economic good stimulation growth and development. The country faces acute housing shortage with a deficit of over 1 million housing units in the midst of rapid population growth and rising urban population. It is common knowledge that the Housing deficit in Ghana now stands well over one (1) million houses. To address this deficit and accommodate new households, there is the need for an annual delivery of about 150,000 units for the next 20 years. GREDA PROBLEM DEFINITION The rate of construction of homes for a number of reasons has fallen behind the growth of population in general and the number of people entering the working class. This has created a big deficit in the country's housing delivery system, particularly in the urban centers. Needs assessment survey conducted in the housing sector in the 2000's was conclusive that the ideal housing properties on high demand are 2-4 bedroom houses in view of the large family size they tend to have. The trend in population growth coupled with the rising cost of building materials has shot up the prices of houses and rent chargeable is exorbitant. The size of the market for residential properties is large as it covers Ghanaian national's resident abroad. The general consensus is that the houses constructed are of poor quality and the finishing fall short of the dream houses that potential homeowners are...
Words: 403 - Pages: 2
...Marlou Melendez Psychology 66 Prof. Sheryl Eden 4 November 2014 Housing The Homeless Based on the US Department of Housing and Urban Development there are about 578,424 homeless people — half of them concentrated in just five states: California, New York, Florida, Texas, and Massachusetts, which accounts for 4 percent of the nation’s homeless. Since 2007, the number of homeless in the United States has declined 11 percent. Housing First is an approach that offers permanent, affordable housing as quickly as possible for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. And there were debates regarding this program, "Is Housing First the best approach to ending homelessness?" There are two different views concerning this issue. Nan Roman the President and CEO of National Alliance To End Homelessness, stated on her argument that Housing First (based on research) is the most effective and least costly way to end homelessness for a majority of people. Nan Roman also stated on her argument that this strategy can help people who experience homelessness to quickly obtain housing supported with rentals assistance and services. There were premises that Housing First is based: that homelessness is traumatic and damaging, and that all people benefit from the stability of a home. Based on Nan Roman's argument, The Centers for Disease control and Prevention found that housing is essential to good health and that children do better at school when they have permanent place to stay. Before...
Words: 824 - Pages: 4
...countries or economies that have housing policies or measures to stabilize the housing markets. Provide your views or suggestions on the best measure to stabilize the housing markets that could be considered or used in Melbourne. In 2013, Melbourne’s population was 4.3 million. By the year 2030 Melbourne’s population is set to reach 6 million and by 2051 the population will jump to 7.8 million. With population growth of this magnitude the demand on housing will undoubtedly increase. In 2014, in his opening remarks at the Bundesbank/German Research Foundation/IMF Conference, Mr Min Zhu, Deputy Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated remarked: “Housing booms have different characteristics across countries and time periods. What is common is that when the bust comes, it very often damages financial stability and the real economy. The tools for containing housing booms are still being developed. The evidence on their effectiveness is only just starting to accumulate. The interactions of various policy tools can be complex. But all this should not be an excuse for inaction. The interlocking use of multiple tools might overcome the shortcomings of any single policy tool.” Indeed, as there are no magic bullets to ensure a stable housing market, it is prudent to therefore to review differing policies that are currently used by other countries to help stabilize their housing markets. In the paragraphs bellows are housing market policy examples or measures...
Words: 4885 - Pages: 20
... Of all the facets of human environment, a few influences a man’s life more than that of a house in which he seeks shelter, security, comfort and dignity. It is indeed where he begins and ends his days. Proper housing is an important need for every human being. Man’s proper utilization of his resources and economic wellbeing greatly depends on the type of accommodation he has been provided with. “a decently housed citizen is a more productive individual, a good housing scheme complimented by high environmental standard equates with less expense on public health, and less adverse social effect produces a higher gross national income figure for a country” . This is why it is generally accepted that good housing is a social index of a good government especially in developing countries like Nigeria should especially accept the provision of housing as a major social responsibility. Housing is a set of durable assets, which accounts for a high proportion of a country’s wealth and on which households spend a substantial part of their income. It is for these reasons that housing has become a regular feature in economic, social and political debates often with highly charged emotional contents(Agbola, 1998). All governments in Nigeria since independence highlighted housing as a major priority. Unfortunately for over 47 years of its independence, Nigeria is yet to develop a vibrant mortgage market and houses continue to be provided through the tortuous traditional method of buying...
Words: 3860 - Pages: 16
...location. I also think that Orange County should protect Disney’s interests in the resort districts especially since Disney continues to be the biggest contributor to the area’s development. Further research reveals that Orange County has resources that can address this issue like Orange County Housing Authority, The Fair Housing Council of Orange County and the HUD program. Retrieved from http://ochousing.org/ I don’t think Disney has an obligation to provide nearby affordable housing for its employees but it may be in Disney’s best interest to consider being part of the solution. Disney’s employees posses a significant salience because they are a major part of the Disney experience that the tourists look for. In an ever changing business environment, talents are hard to find and job market can become competitive and in Disney’s case their end product is to give the tourist the magical experience, so by attempting to help the city provide some solutions to affordable housing, Disney will ensure longevity, loyalty as well as increase productivity from their employees. If I was the CEO of Disney I would collaborate with the Orange County Community Service division to help find affordable housing solutions that will ensure the satisfaction of Disney’s employees and reflect Disney’s support of the community. I would advocate for Disney’s employees using different departments at Disney Corporation...
Words: 333 - Pages: 2
...DEMAND AND SUPPLY FOR HOUSING The determination of prices in local and regional housing markets is a classic example of microeconomics in action! We are seeing the interaction between buyer and seller with prices being offered and agreed before a final transaction is made. In this section we focus on the demand and supply side factors that determine the value of properties in a market. Each housing transaction in the UK depends on a) The price that the seller is willing to agree for their property with the prospective buyer b) The actual price that the buyer is willing and able to pay. Buyers place offers for a property that the seller can either accept or reject A Sellers’ Market When the market demand for properties in a particular area is high and when there is a shortage of good quality properties (i.e. supply is scarce) then the balance of power in the market shifts towards the seller. This is because there is likely to be excess demand in the market for good properties. Sellers can wait for offers on their property to reach (or exceed) their minimum selling price. A Buyers’ Market Conversely when demand both for new and older housing is weak and when there is a glut of properties available on the market, then the power switches to potential buyers. They have a much wider choice of housing available and they should be able to negotiate a price that is lower than the published price. When the demand for houses in a particular area increases (perhaps because...
Words: 4176 - Pages: 17
...Affordable Housing – Some Experiences From Kenya Wafula NABUTOLA, Kenya Key words: Affordable, Mortgage, Sweat Equity, Home, House, Space, Settlements. SUMMARY Shelter is a physiological human need. It is like food. So much so that even those who cannot afford it still need it. By its nature housing represents a major investment requiring a substantial capital outlay. In the majority of housing projects, the developer whether as a corporate or individual has to borrow, beg or steal! Kenya’s GDP is reasonably large but is not growing at the rate that would be classified as booming. In fact the population growth at 2.9% is higher than the GDP growth at 1.1%. These are 2002 figures and therefore are quite current. The purchasing power parity is USD 346.00 per annum. The income per capita per day is USD 0.95! At that rate affordability of anything let alone housing is a big challenge. I am interested in this study because I know that more than one third of Kenyans (12 million – 9 million in rural and 3 million in urban areas) in both the urban and rural areas do not have access to decent and affordable housing. This study seeks to uncover the root causes and effects of abject poverty and suggest ways and means of mitigating those circumstances. TS12 – Housing – Costs and Finance Wafula Nabutola TS12.2 Affordable Housing – Some Experiences from Kenya FIG Working Week 2004 Athens, Greece, May 22-27, 2004 1/17 Affordable Housing – Some Experiences From Kenya Wafula NABUTOLA, Kenya...
Words: 7778 - Pages: 32
...“Opening up the Suburbs”: An Evaluation of Affordable Housing in New Jersey American Literary Critic, Henry Louis Gates once stated, “If Martin Luther King came back, he’d say we need another civil rights movement built on class not race”. Although Gates statement is expandable by many examples, an area particularly demonstrating this inequality among classes, is exclusionary zoning. These local laws have been seen to detain lower-income individuals from residing in certain communities by mandating specifications on lot sizes, types of housing, and the number of buildings and occupants allowed. Consequently these factors trigger an increase in community housing costs, and thus drive away lower-income individuals. In the past few decades however, states’ tolerance for exclusionary zoning have dissipated, and new zoning requirements to enforce realistic housing opportunities have been enacted. Particularly, the state of New Jersey has chosen to tackle affordable housing through the judicially enforced Mount Laurel Doctrine. Yet even under its establishment, the doctrine’s history and evolvement has proven that “opening up the suburbs” follows with the opening of controversy. Since the doctrine’s creation, courts have been confronted with hundreds of litigations from developers and municipalities stemming from Mount Laurel’s questionable creditability and changing demands. The Mount Laurel Doctrine was originally created off the court decision made in Southern Burlington County...
Words: 3358 - Pages: 14
...I watched a A documentary about affordable public housing, particularly the Section 8 Housing Voucher program, Poverty, Politics, and Profit (2017) – PBS/frontline. The documentary gave an overview of the affordable housing crisis and how some cities are growing the grows, the number of affordable homes is shrinking. This is a major issue for many low income families, especially after the 2007 housing crisis, over the last decade the average household incomes have declined while rents have been rising. There are more than 40,000 evictions are in Dallas every year and 2.5 million evictions throughout the country each year. The documentary followed a few different families who were in need of finding affordable housing and trying to do better...
Words: 354 - Pages: 2
...The Moladi model clearly presents quite a radical departure from conventional building technology. Perhaps its main advantage is that it seems able to combine a high level of quality with cost-effectiveness, a crucial asset for any type of building, but particularly in the context of affordable housing. Moladi has enormous potential in this regard, and there is little doubt that if scaled up, it could make a very significant contribution to improving lives at the base of the socio-economic pyramid. The challenges are important but they are not insurmountable. So why, one might ask, has Moladi not made more headway so far, after over two decades in operation? One of the possible answers is that there seems to be a fundamental contradiction between its stated ambition to “house the whole world” and the channels Moladi has chosen so far to expand its model. It is true that it may be hindered by resistance to change, vested interests and the entrenched scepticism of policy-makers, but a truly cost-effective and efficient model is always likely to attract investors and catch on if the right partners are recruited. Understandably, like many other family firms, Moladi seeks to strike the right balance between keeping control of the firm within the family while allowing outside investors and managers to take the business to the next level. Another dimension of the Moladi model, which has been a source of strength but also perhaps a hidden weakness...
Words: 443 - Pages: 2
...examine the nature of housing bubbles and how housing prices are affected by the elasticity of housing supply. They begin by citing from literature to show that price movements of assets, including markets, include an irrational exuberance element as well as their fundamental valuations; this leads to the difficulty in explaining the significant variations in housing prices between 1999 and 2005. As a result, instead of developing a test to detect the presence of a housing bubble, the authors propose to analyze the nature of this bubble; this is especially in light of the fact that housing supply and pricing influence construction activities as well as population immigration, thus impacting general welfare. They develop an endogenous model for asset bubbles by making it dependent on supply inelasticity – the model predicts that when a bubble bursts, houses that are constructed during the bubble witness their prices falling to lower than their pre-bubble values. Further, they also perform an empirical analysis of data on prices, construction activities and supply elasticity of houses during two boom-and-bust cycles (during the 1980s and post-1996); they also study the differences in pricing and supply levels during these cycles. It is observed that the premise of the paper is well established, and the proposed models clearly defined; the predictions from the models are identified properly in terms of stated elastic markets (Orlando and Phoenix), and a previous housing bust (1989-1996)...
Words: 1001 - Pages: 5
...Public Housing in Urban Communities Abstract In this paper I will be discussing the many aspects of the public housing authorizes. Working for the Jersey City Housing Authority, I see first hand the many problems that are going on and also living in public housing I have seen the many ups and downs as well. For example, the budget cuts that are going on throughout the United States are causing more public housing to loose funding and are causing them to down size in staff and housing as well. Many of the public housing sites in the United States are privatizing because they don’t have the funding and staff to manage these sites that are considered to be severely distressed. What is public housing? According to the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): Public housing was established to provide decent and safe housing for eligible low-income families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities. Public housing comes in all size and types, from scattered single family houses to high rise apartments for elderly families. There are approximately 1.2 million households living in public housing unites, managed by some 3,300 HAs. However, over the past few years public housing has changed. For example, there are less funding for public housing and now a lot of the public housing sites all over the United States are being privatized. In 1980, many changes started to occur in...
Words: 603 - Pages: 3
...HOUSING AS A SOCIAL PROBLEM The literature on economic development abounds with references to the ‘social’ nature of housing requirement. This phrase is used to distinguish the housing sector from other capital intensive sectors of developing economies such as manufacturing. The implication, which is often made very explicit, indeed, is that while there is no ‘economic’ need for housing investment since the market demand for it appears very weak, it ultimately must be provided in order to solve a “social problem.” According to Smith (1970), housing sector is regarded as a drag upon the process of economic growth. While it is admitted that housing must be provided or improved eventually, many national economic development programmes regard housing as a form of investment eminently able to be postponed. The longer it can be put off, the reason goes, the better the result for the nation as a whole. The big question How does housing come to be excluded from the category of ‘economic good’s’ so that it must be bestowed as a kind of social security benefit? Housing as a ‘social good’ is not a universal concept. There are portions of the world in which the satisfaction of demand for housing and housing improvement, is a rewarding private business which does not lack eager participants and which seems to produce, as in the United States, a general level of housing welfare which is widely envied. Nevertheless, in many parts of the world, housing is regarded as a demand...
Words: 3047 - Pages: 13
...Reflection Paper Housing Crisis Frontline producer Michael Kirk tries to explain how the economy went so bad so fast. Why emergency measures by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake and Secretary of Treasury Henry Paulson couldn't manage to prevent the worst economic crisis in a generation. It was 2007 when the housing bubble began to burst and Wall Street started to panic. By spring of the following year, rumors began to swirl that prominent investment bank Bear Stearns was about to go bankrupt due to billions of dollars in bad mortgages. In the world of finance rumors can be the difference between success and failure. It was the beginning of a bad chain reaction, someone quoted in the clip “it was like a disease spreading quickly” Over the course of 24 hours, the stock market crashed and credit markets across the globe froze, effectively sending the economy into a downward spiral. It sent this huge confidence shock wave through the entire economy because all of a sudden, people were saying, "If two of the largest companies on earth can fail, that means anyone can fail." At that point, there is no company too large to not fail from the housing bubble Charles Duhigg. After exhausting all other options, Paulson personally called the CEOs of the nation's nine largest banks and told them to come to his office the next day at the Treasury building. Paulson gave each man a single piece of paper spelling out the conditions that said they agreed to sell shares to the government...
Words: 624 - Pages: 3
...through early 2004, the housing market was busting record rates in sales and the fast growth made housing prices soar to record highs. For example, the value of a home bought in late 2001, for a price of $290K, could well have the retail value of $340K by the middle of 2002, and by the following year could near double in value to an astonishing $460K or more. These out of the norm home values were driving people to suddenly sell their homes they had owned for years at double the original value, and make a nice profit to reinvest that money into a “dream home”. This also caused a swell of first time buyers to feel the need to quickly get in on the boom before it was impossible to own a home due to the price. The Fed Reserve set the stage for this boom and made this time frame an “anything goes” for the banking and investment community. In the late 1990’s through the early 2000’s, the U.S. economy was facing a mini recession and the tech industry’s dot com bubble popped; leaving Wall Street and it’s investors in a short fall. The Federal Reserve lowered interest rates to an all-time low, that hadn’t been seen in over forty years. Investment companies and banks were looking to get a higher return on their money and capital investments. Over the course of time, the Fed Reserve kept interest rates low. People started buying homes and the interest rates staying low caused a housing boom. The housing boom started the rise in housing prices. The rise in housing prices started people buying...
Words: 1402 - Pages: 6
