Housing estate

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A housing estate in West Kensington, with many rows of similar terraced flats. West Kensington Estate 2012-09-22 13.05.44.jpg
A housing estate in West Kensington, with many rows of similar terraced flats.
A housing estate in Camden Town, London, with two blocks of flats visible London MMB 76 Granby Terrace.jpg
A housing estate in Camden Town, London, with two blocks of flats visible
A modern housing estate in Gdansk, Poland Alfapark Gdansk.jpg
A modern housing estate in Gdańsk, Poland

A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex, housing development, subdivision or community) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country.

Contents

Popular throughout the United States [ citation needed ] and the United Kingdom, they often consist of single family detached, semi-detached ("duplex") or terraced homes, with separate ownership of each dwelling unit. Building density depends on local planning norms.

In major Asian cities, such as Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, and Tokyo, an estate may range from detached houses to high-density tower blocks with or without commercial facilities; in Europe and America, these may take the form of town housing, high-rise housing projects, or the older-style rows of terraced houses associated with the Industrial Revolution, detached or semi-detached houses with small plots of land around them forming gardens, and are frequently without commercial facilities and such.

In Central and Eastern Europe, living in housing estates is a common way of living. Most of these housing estates originated during the communist era because the construction of large housing estates was an important part of building plans in communist countries in Europe. They can be located in suburban and urban areas.

Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance.

A housing development is "often erected on a tract of land by one builder and controlled by one management." [1] In the United Kingdom, the term is quite broad and can include anything from high-rise government-subsidised housing right through to more upmarket, developer-led suburban tract housing. Such estates are usually designed to minimise through-traffic flows and provide recreational space in the form of parks and greens.

Etymology

The use of the term may[ original research? ] have arisen from an area of housing being built on what had been a country estate as towns and cities expanded in and after the 19th century. It was in use by 1901. [2] Reduction of the phrase to mere "estate" is common in the United Kingdom and Ireland (especially when preceded by the specific estate name), but not in the United States.

Housing types

There are several different housing types utilized by housing developers. [3] Each of the different housing types will have their distinctive characteristics, density ranges, number of units, and floors. [3]

Asia

Hong Kong

Due to dense population and government control of land use, Hong Kong's most common residential housing form is the highrise housing estate, which may be publicly owned, privately owned, or semi-private. Due to the real-estate developers oligopoly (sometimes called real estate hegemony, Chinese :地產霸權) in the territory, and the economies of scale of mass developments, there is the tendency of new private tower block developments with 10 to over 100 towers, ranging from 30 to 70 stories high.

Public housing provides affordable homes for those on low incomes, with rents which are heavily subsidised, financed by financial activities such as rents and charges collected from car parks and shops within or near the estates. They may vary in scale, and are usually located in the remote or less accessible parts of the territory, but urban expansion has put some of them in the heart of the urban area. Although some units are destined exclusively for rental, some of the flats within each development are earmarked for sale at prices that are lower than for private developments.

Private housing estates usually feature a cluster of high-rise buildings, often with its own shopping centre or market in the case of larger developments. Mei Foo Sun Chuen, built by Mobil, is the earliest (1965) and largest (99 blocks) example of its kind. Since the mid-1990s, private developers have been incorporating leisure facilities including clubhouse facilities, [4] namely swimming pools, tennis courts and function rooms in their more up-market developments. The most recent examples would also have cinemas, dance studios, cigar-rooms.

Uniform high-rise developments may form 'wall effect (Chinese :屏風效應)', adversely affecting air circulation, causing some controversy. [5] In-fill developments will tend to be done by smaller developers with less capital. These will be smaller in scale, and less prone to the wall effect.

Pakistan

Given the security situation and power shortages in South Asia, 'gated communities' with self-generated energy and modern amenities (24-hour armed security, schools, hospitals, a fire department, retail shopping, restaurants and entertainment centres ) such as Bahria Town and DHA have been developed in all major Pakistani cities. Bahria Town is the largest private housing society in Asia. [6] Bahria has been featured by international magazines and news agencies such as GlobalPost, Newsweek, Los Angeles Times and Emirates 24/7, referred to as the prosperous face of Pakistan. [7] [8] [9] [10] Gated communities in Pakistan are targeted towards upper middle class and upper class, and are mostly immune from problems of law enforcement.

Europe

Czech Republic and Slovakia

Petrzalka in Bratislava, Slovakia Bratislava Petrzalka R01.jpg
Petržalka in Bratislava, Slovakia

Forms of housing estates may vary in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. During the communist era of Czechoslovakia, a construction of large housing estates (Czech : sídliště, Slovak : sídlisko ) was an important part of building plans. The government wanted to provide large quantities of fast and affordable housing and to slash costs by employing uniform designs over the whole country. They also sought to foster a "collectivist nature" in people. People living in these housing estates can either usually own their apartments or rent them, usually through a private landlord. There's usually a mix of social classes in these housing estates. [11]

Most buildings in Czech and Slovak housing estates are so called "paneláks", a colloquial term in Czech and Slovak for a panel building constructed of pre-fabricated, pre-stressed concrete, such as those extant in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and elsewhere in the world. Large housing estates of concrete panel buildings (paneláks) now dominate the streets of Prague, Bratislava and other towns. The largest housing estate in Central Europe and Slovakia can be found in Petržalka (population about 130,000), a part of the Slovak capital of Bratislava.

Britain and Ireland

The high-density Corbusian-style Broadwater Farm Estate in London N17. Broadwater Farm Estate from Gloucester Road.jpg
The high-density Corbusian-style Broadwater Farm Estate in London N17.
A circa 1920s middle-class housing estate in Whitehall, Dublin D09. Gaeltacht Park, Whitehall. Dublin, Ireland - geograph.org.uk - 332084.jpg
A circa 1920s middle-class housing estate in Whitehall, Dublin D09.

In Britain and Ireland, housing estates have become prevalent since the Second World War, as a more affluent population demanded larger and more widely spaced houses coupled with the increase of car usage for which terraced streets were unsuitable.

Housing estates were produced by either local authorities (more recently, housing associations) or by private developers. The former tended to be a means of producing public housing leading to monotenure estates full of council houses often known as "council estates". The latter can refer to higher end tract housing for the middle class and even upper middle class.

The problems incurred[ clarification needed ] by the early attempts at high density tower-block housing turned people away from this style of living. The resulting demand for land has seen many towns and cities increase in size for relatively moderate increases in population. This has been largely at the expense of rural and greenfield land.[ citation needed ] Recently, there has been some effort to address this problem by banning the development of out-of-town commercial developments and encouraging the reuse of brownfield or previously developed sites for residential building. Nevertheless, the demand for housing continues to rise, and in the UK at least has precipitated a significant housing crisis.

North America

United States

Forms of housing estates in the United States include tract housing, apartment complexes, and public housing.[ citation needed ]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tower block</span> Tall building; as opposed to a low-rise building

A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. It is used as a residential, office building, or other functions including hotel, retail, or with multiple purposes combined. Residential high-rise buildings are also known in some varieties of English, such as British English, as tower blocks and may be referred to as MDUs, standing for multi-dwelling units. A very tall high-rise building is referred to as a skyscraper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public housing</span> Residential properties owned by a government

Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, definitions of poverty, and other criteria for allocation vary within different contexts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apartment</span> Self-contained housing unit occupying part of a building

An apartment, flat, or unit is a self-contained housing unit that occupies part of a building, generally on a single storey. There are many names for these overall buildings. The housing tenure of apartments also varies considerably, from large-scale public housing, to owner occupancy within what is legally a condominium, to tenants renting from a private landlord.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Townhouse</span> Individual urban house in a terrace or row

A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residence of someone whose main or largest residence was a country house.

A semi-detached house is a single family duplex dwelling house that shares one common wall with the next house. The name distinguishes this style of house from detached houses, with no shared walls, and terraced houses, with a shared wall on both sides. Often, semi-detached houses are built in pairs in which each house's layout is a mirror image of the other's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Condominium</span> Form of ownership of real property

A condominium is an ownership regime in which a building is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual owners. These individual units are surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned and managed by the owners of the units. The term can be applied to the building or complex itself, and is sometimes applied to individual units. The term "condominium" is mostly used in the US and Canada, but similar arrangements are used in many other countries under different names.

Panelák is a colloquial term in Czech and Slovak for a large panel system panel building constructed of pre-fabricated, pre-stressed concrete, such as those extant in the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in the world. Paneláks are usually located in housing estates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Single-family detached home</span> Standalone house

A single-family detached home, also called a single-detached dwelling,single-family residence (SFR) or separate house is a free-standing residential building. It is defined in opposition to a multi-family residential dwelling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duplex (building)</span> Type of residential building

A duplex house plan has two living units attached to each other, either next to each other as townhouses, condominiums or above each other like apartments. By contrast, a building comprising two attached units on two distinct properties is typically considered semi-detached or twin homes but is also called a duplex in parts of the Northeastern United States, Western Canada, and Saudi Arabia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multifamily residential</span> Type of housing development that emphasizes density and proximity of many neighbors

Multifamily residential is a classification of housing where multiple separate housing units for residential inhabitants are contained within one building or several buildings within one complex. Units can be next to each other, or stacked on top of each other. Common forms include apartment building and condominium, where typically the units are owned individually rather than leased from a single building owner. Many intentional communities incorporate multifamily residences, such as in cohousing projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secondary suite</span> Dwelling on a property separated from the main home

Secondary suites are self-contained apartments, cottages, or small residential units, that are located on a property that has a separate main, single-family home, duplex, or other residential unit. In some cases, the ADU or in-law is attached to the principal dwelling or is an entirely separate unit, located above a garage, across a carport, or in the backyard on the same property. Reasons for wanting to add a secondary suite to a property may be to receive additional income, provide social and personal support to a family member, or obtain greater security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Housing unit</span> Space used as a home

A housing unit, or dwelling unit, is a structure or the part of a structure or the space that is used as a home, residence, or sleeping place by one person or more people who maintain a common household.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medium-density housing</span>

Medium-density housing is a term used within urban planning and academic literature to refer to a category of residential development that falls between detached suburban housing and large multi-story buildings. There is no singular definition of medium-density housing as its precise definition tends to vary between jurisdiction. Scholars however, have found that medium density housing ranges from about 25 to 80 dwellings per hectare, although most commonly sits around 30 and 40 dwellings/hectare. Typical examples of medium-density housing include duplexes, triplexes, townhouses, row homes, detached homes with garden suites, and walk-up apartment buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bahria Town</span> Pakistani real-estate development company

Bahria Town (Private) Limited is an Islamabad-based privately owned real-estate development company which owns, develops and manages properties across Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southgate Estate</span> Former brutalist housing development in Runcorn, England

The Southgate Estate was a modernist public housing project located in Runcorn New Town and completed in 1977. The estate was designed by James Stirling, and comprised 1,500 residential units intended to house 6,000 people. The estate was demolished between 1990 and 1992 and replaced with another housing development, known as Hallwood Park, based around more traditional design principles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Missing middle housing</span>

Missing middle housing refers to a lack of medium-density housing in the North American context. It is often characterized by a range of multi-family or clustered housing types that are compatible in scale with single-family or transitional neighborhoods. It is usually used to describe a phenomenon in Canada and the United States, and those countries which have sought to replicate their style of urban planning, which lacks this type of medium-density housing due to car dependant suburban sprawl and zoning regulations.

Urban planning in the Czech Republic has a long history, however can be broadly categorised into the time periods before, during and after the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic between 1948 and 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Real estate</span> Subset of land that has been legally defined and the improvements to it made by human efforts

Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as growing crops, minerals or water, and wild animals; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, buildings or housing in general. In terms of law, real relates to land property and is different from personal property while estate means the "interest" a person has in that land property.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sídlisko</span> Slovak term concerning housing

Sídlisko is a term used in Slovak which mainly means housing estate. Other terms associated with this term are housing project, housing estate, settlement, or neighbourhood. In these housing projects, apartment buildings are built in the most of the sídlisko's area, most of these building being paneláks. Most paneláks were built by the socialist government of the former Czechoslovakia. Such buildings remain in these housing projects and many of them are being gentrified and painted vibrant colors today. These housing projects can be found in urban areas, as well as in suburbs. These housing projects were built to provide fast and affordable housing. Most of these housing projects are occupied by various different social classes. People living in these housing projects usually own their apartments, but some owners rent them instead, usually as private landlords, a legal concept similar to Section 8.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Single-family zoning</span> Residential planning classification

Single-family zoning is a type of planning restriction applied to certain residential zones in the United States and Canada in order to restrict development to only allow single-family detached homes. It disallows townhomes, duplexes, and multifamily housing (apartments) from being built on any plot of land with this zoning designation.

References

  1. "housing development". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  2. "housing estate" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.). Note the example in a 1923 book by Francis Longstreth Thompson, Site planning in practice; an investigation of the principles of housing estate development.
  3. 1 2 3 "Housing Type Sheets" (PDF). 2005. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 August 2014.
  4. Chan, Karen (30 May 1996). "Nan Fung to build $1b flats in Tsuen Wan". The Standard. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 22 March 2007.
  5. Yung, Chester (21 December 2006). "'Asia's walled city' leaves – residents longing for air". The Standard. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 21 March 2007.
  6. "Asia's Largest Real Estate Builder Bahria Town Website". 23 February 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
  7. "Pakistani expats' new realty check". Emirates247.com. 14 December 2013.
  8. "Happiness for some in Pakistan's gated communities". Archived from the original on 20 March 2016.
  9. "Bahria Town, Gateway to Paradise". Newsweek Pakistan. 10 December 2013.
  10. "Pakistan gated community sparks controversy". Los Angeles Times. 6 October 2011.
  11. iHNed.cz. "Zachrante nase panelaky, tlaci na EU Cesko". ihned.cz/ (in Czech). Archived from the original on 22 August 2006. Retrieved 1 May 2020.