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Why is Housing Always Satisfactory? A Study into the Impact of Preference and Experience on Housing Appreciation

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  • Sylvia Jansen

Abstract

This study focuses on residents’ perceptions of residential quality concerning 23 different dwelling aspects. Respondents were asked to indicate their appreciation of these dwelling aspects on a scale ranging from 0 (“extremely unattractive”) to 100 (“extremely attractive”). The influence of two potential factors on the appreciation of dwelling aspects is examined: (1) preference and (2) experience. It was hypothesized that residents who live according to their preferences give higher appreciation scores than residents who do not. This should even apply to low-quality housing. Furthermore, it was argued that residents appreciate their current housing situation more than residents who do not live in that particular housing situation. This effect should be independent of preference. The impact of both preference and of experience could be confirmed. The results also showed an interaction effect between preference and experience: the positive effect of experience on appreciation is larger in residents who live in a housing situation that they do not prefer. This result would be expected if the impact of experience works to decrease the ‘gap’ in residential satisfaction due to the discrepancy between what residents have and what they want. In conclusion, why is housing always satisfactory? In this paper, housing is satisfactory because the ‘gap’ between what residents want and what they have is small; residents seem to have realistic aspirations. Furthermore, residents appreciate what they already have, even if this is not what they prefer. Copyright The Author(s) 2013

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  • Sylvia Jansen, 2013. "Why is Housing Always Satisfactory? A Study into the Impact of Preference and Experience on Housing Appreciation," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 113(3), pages 785-805, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:113:y:2013:i:3:p:785-805
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-012-0114-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Chang, Zheng, 2018. "Information Barriers, Housing Searches, and Residential Satisfaction: A Study of Mainland China Students in Hong Kong," International Real Estate Review, Global Social Science Institute, vol. 21(3), pages 343-365.
    2. Fan Wu & Yue Liu & Yingyan Zeng & Hui Yan & Yi Zhang & Ling-Hin Li, 2020. "Evaluation of the Human Settlements Environment of Public Housing Community: A Case Study of Guangzhou," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-17, September.
    3. Fenglong Wang & Donggen Wang, 2020. "Changes in residential satisfaction after home relocation: A longitudinal study in Beijing, China," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(3), pages 583-601, February.
    4. Dorota Mantey, 2021. "Objective and Subjective Determinants of Neighborhood Satisfaction in the Context of Retrofitting Suburbs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-19, October.
    5. Rasheed Osuolale Oladosu & Mohammed Abdulkadir & Mohammed Abdulkadir, 2023. "Contextual Reports on Residential Satisfaction Studies from Developing Countries: Review Highlights," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(5), pages 1765-1777, May.
    6. Jessica K. Breadsell & Joshua J. Byrne & Gregory M. Morrison, 2019. "Pre- and Post-Occupancy Evaluation of Resident Motivations for and Experiences of Establishing a Home in a Low-Carbon Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-17, July.
    7. Rędzińska, Katarzyna & Szulczewska, Barbara, 2019. "Landscape in change as perceived by its residents: A case study of Wilanow West in Warsaw," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 259-270.
    8. Yu Chen & Yunxiao Dang & Guanpeng Dong, 2020. "An investigation of migrants’ residential satisfaction in Beijing," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(3), pages 563-582, February.

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