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Understanding the Need of Home Buyers

Satisfaction for Dwellers Well-being

Dr. Yogesh K. Garg, Dr. M.K. Trivedi and Prof. A.K. Vinodia

Abstract

This paper seeks to expand the understanding about poverty and its causes and attemptsto spell out policies to create an urban situation free of poverty in all its dimensions. Itargues that major reductions in human deprivation are indeed possible when the forces of

public synergy and technological advancements can be harnessed to serve the interests ofthe poor people. Even though current and future challenges are daunting, we have entereda new millennium with a better understanding of urban development management. Butwe should also recognize that there is a need for much more emphasis on solidly layinginstitutional and social foundations for managing vulnerability and encouraging

participation of the poor to ensure inclusive growth.

1. INTRODUCTION

Shelter is considered as one of the basic necessities for healthy living. Housing in

India is not merely a shelter but also a matter of self satisfaction and pride in the

society. Adequate shelter has been defined as more than a roof over ones head,

it means adequate privacy, adequate space, physical accessibility, adequate security

of tenure, structural stability and durability, adequate lighting, heating and

ventilation, adequate basic infrastructure such as water, sanitation, and waste

management facilities, suitable environmental quality and health factors and

adequate and accessible location with regard to work and basic facilities, all of

which should be available at an affordable cost (UN Habitat, 1996).

During last two decades, the growing economy, high salary and easy bank loans

along with government policies to promote housing had given a significant boost to

the housing sector. This boost not only increases the housing activities but also

influences home buyers priorities and attitudes regarding home ownership. One

of the major changes in priority is the age at which one owns a house and the

attitude towards owning it. Current trends reveal that the age of home ownership

changes from late fifties to early thirties. According to the Associated Chambers of

Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) the average age of home buyers in

India have come down by nearly 20 years (ASSOCHAM, 2007). The age group for

property registration with real estate developers like DLF, Prasvnath, Omaxe, Unitechin New Delhi and NCR, etc. for personal use was between 30 to 38 years compared

to an age between 55-58 years for buyers twenty years ago.

Dr. Yogesh .K. Garg, Faculty, Department of Architect and Planning, MANIT, Bhopal hasdone B.Arch., M.U.R.P. from IIT, Roorkee, Ph.D. E-mail: [email protected]. M.K. Tiwari, Reader, Department of Civil Engineering, MITS, Gwalior has done B.E.,M.Tech. (IIT Kharagpur), Ph.D. from IIT, Roorkee. E-mail: [email protected]

A.K. Vinodia, Faculty, School of Planning and Architecture, (SPA), Bhopal has done B.Arch.,M.U.R.P. from IIT, Roorkee. E-mail: [email protected]

Institute of Town Planners, India Journal 7 - 1, 96 - 102, January - March 2010

Dr. Yogesh K. Garg, Dr. M.K. Trivedi and Prof. A.K. Vinodiaa


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This change made an impact on the attitude of owning a house. Previously in the

age of late fifties, people used to construct individual houses conforming to their

life style, family size, affordability and other factors. They also preferred to

construct the house themselves by giving it a years time to maintain the quality ofconstruction. One could afford a house as one occupied much senior position and

achieved most of his goals till that age. Whereas in contrast young home buyers

can not afford to invest years of time for construction of their houses as they are

at the start of their careers and have many milestones to cover. Hence their attitude

is sifting towards purchasing readymade houses at little higher prices from the

builders.

Due to this change in attitude, not only small builders have mushroomed at local

level but multi national companies and large business groups such as DLF, Ansals,

Sahara, Mantri Reality, etc; have also started making huge investments in the housing

sector. Every home buyer approaches a

builder for purchase of house with

certain expectations. The discrepancies

between customers expectations and

experiences, and customer and provider

perceptions are significantly related to

customer satisfaction (Brown and

Swartz, 1989). Expectations of the home

buyers are directly related to his well

being. Thus customer satisfaction has

become a key driver for the private new

house building industry and there hasbeen a shift from producer convenience

to customer focus (Barlow and Ozaki,

2000). Since a customer makes

judgments about services and products

based on her expectations, analyzing the gap between customers aspirations and

what has been delivered provides clues as to how house builders have performed

and what they should do in order to improve their performance (Fig. 1).

The concept of homebuyers satisfaction is at very premature stage in India though

a lot more is done in developed countries. Number of authors has used some form

of comparison to model housing satisfaction across the developed world. Some of

those noteworthy contributions are:

Habitability of a house is influenced not only by the engineering elements but

also by social, behavioral, cultural, and other elements in the entire societal-

environmental system (Onibokun, 1974);

The concept of housing satisfaction has been used as a key predictor of an

individuals perception of general quality of life (Campbell et al, 1976 as cited

in Djebarni and Al-Abed, 2000);

Fig. 1 Gap between Expectation and Delivery Quality




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Housing satisfaction is defined as the degree of contentment experienced by

an individual or a family member with regard to the current housing situation

(McCray and Day, 1977);

The concept of housing does not lie within the individual dwelling. It is acomposite of the overall physical and social components that make up the

housing system (Francescato, et al, 1987);

Housing satisfaction is defined as perceived gap between a respondents needs

and aspirations and the reality of the current residential context (Galster, 1987:

93 as cited in Varady and Preiser, 1998);

Housing satisfaction is a complex attitude (Satsangi and Kearns, 1992). Housing

satisfaction is influenced by a broad array of objectives and subjectively

perceived conditions (Theodori, 2001); and

The concept of housing or residential satisfaction is often employed to evaluate

residents perceptions of and feelings for their housing units and the environment

(Ogu, 2002).

2. HOUSING IN THE LIGHT OF MASLOWS HIERARCHY OF NEEDS

Maslows hierarchy of needs provides a useful framework for identifying the

interlocking needs that may be served by shelter.

2.1 Physiological Needs

Minimal shelter may provide a place to rest and sleep at a time when human beings

are especially vulnerable. However under such circumstances, other physical needs

may be met outside the shelter. Food may be eaten out of doors or prepared at a

fire close to this shelter. The larger environment amply provides air and space.

While people from different cultures might have different perceptions of quality

of breathable air, light, and ventilation, housing in urban context by contrast, isdesigned to provide a reasonably controlled environment with respect to light,

temperature, ventilation, and sanitation.

2.2 Security and Safety Needs

Housing creates a shell for its occupants and protects them from the outside world.Within its shell, a family or other human groups can feel safe. It can accumulateand safeguard its possessions. The family can store food and their items needed tomaintain it. The house may also be the center for the groups noted observancesand may provide a place for the familys sacred objects, a shrine or other stability

oriented possessions.

2.3 Social NeedsHousing provides a setting for interaction and the intimate activities that make up

our social experience. Housing has tremendous impact on social relations. The

form of housing dictates the activities that can take place in it. Social relations are

quite different in joint family as compared to striations, where housing

accommodates a single nuclear family. Furthermore cultural background, the layout

of space, and the arrangement of furnishings and equipments influence the nature

of the activities that can take place within its walls.




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2.4 Self Esteem or Ego Needs

In most cultures, housing has a status confessing function. Every culture has an

image of how its people ought to live. To the extent that shelter conforms to the

norms of the society reflecting self-esteem. Our concept of self is reinforced whenour homes meet the expectations of our peer groups. In our society, success confers

status, and feelings of accomplishment and achievement are important components

of self-esteem. Success allows a family to move up, and upward mobility includes

an improved standard of living represented by access to improved housing improved

services in a better neighborhood than the family enjoyed previously.

2.5 Self Actualization Needs

Our need for order, beauty, and meaning in over lives is equally important. Directing

creativity toward meeting this need is on advanced concept that is realized in the

context of the values and goals considered important by a particular person of

family. For self actualizing of people and families housing is more than a place tolive. Here housing needs become distinctly individualized and personalized. In this

context, the home may be a reflection, in fact a symbol of self-expression and

self-realization.

3. HOUSING AND LIFE STYLES

While Maslows hierarchy provides a useful framework for identifying the

interlocking needs that may be served by shelter. Subtler, and perhaps harder to

identity, are the myriad wants we develop over a lifetime and associate with

housing. These wants, some of which might be classified as luxuries rather than

necessities, may be traced to family influences, peer pressure or the appeals of

advertising and promotion campaigns that build up many of our expectations

concerning housing. Life style may be defined as the way of life followed by any

group of people, and it includes their social roles and the characteristic setting in

which behavior associated with these roles takes place. A life style may, therefore,

reflect a preference for or a province against a particular way of living sometimes

at an unconscious level.

The factors most significant in establishing a life style are: age, occupation, marital

status, education, and income - each of which influences our social roles. A familys

life style will reflect the work roles of the parents, their education, and their

single or combined incomes since these factors contribute to shaping their interests

and activities. Furthermore, life style is related to the dominant role in a persons

life at a given time such as the student, the young worker, the young married,

young parent, the aging parent, which manifests it in varied housing requirements.

Another important aspect of life style is the dominant sphere of activity of a given

time in a persons familys life such as school, work place, on home since these are

the places where role behavior occurs. As roles become more fragmented, life

style become more complex and both new behaviors and was behavior settings may

become important and must be made available in conjunction with housing.




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4. THE EMERGING PARAMETERS FOR HOME BUYERS SATISFACTION

Following are the parameters that are used to predict the satisfaction of the home

buyers from their dwellings in various studies:

Parameters related to the user: Family type with children or without children

or crowded, socio-economical structure or social status, profession, previous

environment (appropriateness of dwelling to housing stereotype), sex, age,

education, income, and period of stay;

Parameters related to the environment: Physical comfort, overall appearance

and physical condition, accessibility to services, development scale, organization

(planning), rise in value and level of security;

Parameters related to the building: Management, location, value and physical

concept;

Parameters related to the spaces in the dwelling: quality of spaces, physical

comfort, spatial organization (design quality and functional relations betweenspaces and location of spaces in respect to each other), size of house, location

of the house and dwelling aesthetics; and

Parameters related to human needs are: convenience, safety, need for social

contact, freedom, activity, work and presence, beauty, meaning, value and

social approval (need for social status).

5. HOME BUYERS DISSATISFACTION

Over the years, many housing satisfaction surveys and studies were conducted in

various parts of the globe to examine the users expectations for housing. The

studies unfolded some critical areas of concern. CABE (2005) has reached the

following conclusions:

There has been growing concern that the internal space of new dwellings may

be getting smaller;

There is evidence that less family size housing is being provided;

There is however concern that internal space within both family and non-family

homes may also be reducing;

This has implications for accessibility, sustainability and quality of life including

health;

There is a relationship between size of units and affordability; and

Government targets have focused on unit output rather than the quality of

provision.

Karn and Sheridans (1994) conclusions:

There was a continuing decline in the standards of homes built by housing

associations;

Other design changes have also occurred which adversely affect usable spaces

such as combining of living and circulation spaces with extremely poor storage

space;




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The private sector provided a wider range of floor space standards but were

lower substantially;

Comparison of space standards is complicated by lower occupancy in the private

sector; and New housing association homes were being built in a form which allowed little

scope for enlargement or adaptation at a later date. Terraces or small plot

sizes, and rooms were too small to remedy the lack of internal floor space.

Altman (1975) outlines the effects:

As the number of persons within homes increases:

The number of social contacts increases and privacy decreases;

The number of unwanted social interactions increases;

Parents may be unable to monitor the childrens behavior; and

Watching television may be frustrated and sharing of spaces.Pressures arising from these situations may lead to interpersonal aggression,

withdrawal from the family, sexually deviant behavior, psychological distress or

physical illness.

From these studies, it is clear that there is a mismatch between homebuyers

aspirations for dwelling type, number of bedrooms and amount of space provided

for living and storage. In addition market demands appear to be pushing in the

direction of increased space and flexibility, and the ability for more rooms to be

multi-use rather than rooms that are designed so as to be capable of only allowing

one use such as bedroom. This suggests that dwellings developed to very tight

space standards will be seen as less attractive and therefore less valuable thandwellings with more space.

6. CONCLUSIONS

In India, not much research has been done in understanding and conceptualizing

the needs of home buyers satisfaction for dwellers well being. With the changing

scenario of the Indian economy and increased horizon of job opportunity, a new

section of young people with high salary package has emerged as home buyers in

India. Due to noticeable increase in purchase of readymade houses many national

and multinational real estate developers have cropped up in all metropolitan areas

and large cities to exploit this potential.

The developers play lord and master to middle income individuals who have a

dream of owning a house. Most sale agreements are heavily loaded in favor of

builders in the currently unregulated market. There are several cases where home

owner finds cheated by builders mostly on account of its advance promises and

supplied quality. Some malicious terms like super built-up area, multi-use space,

clubbing of circulation spaces, etc. are used to confuse the customers. Minimum

internal dwelling area is drastically reduced and not sufficient for performing various




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indoor activities where as habitants taste, psychology and life style are merely

considered.

Deficient services and amenities, small sit-out, poor light and ventilation,undeveloped external environment and low material specifications are the main

causes of major defects in many real estate products in India.

Low satisfaction levels from the dwelling can result in stress, health and adjustment

problems and pathologic symptoms. In addition to this, inadequate fundamental

dwelling norms may be harmful for health. Therefore, it is very important to predict

the fundamental housing norms and standards in light of ready made houses (Ukoha,

and Beamish, 1997).

REFERENCES

ASSOCHAM (2007) Emerging Age Trends for Buying Dwelling Units for Self-Use, ASSOCHAM,

Mumbai.

Barlow, J. and Ozaki, R. (2000) User needs, customization and new technology in UK housebuilding, A paper presented at the ENHR 2000 conference, Gvle, Sweden, 2630 June.

Brown, S.W. and Swartz, T.A. (1989) A gap analysis of professional service quality,Journal of

Marketing, Vol. 53, pp. 9298.

CABE (2005) What Homebuyers Want: Attitudes and Decision-making among consumers,CABE.

Francescato, G., Weidman, S. and Anderson, J.R. (1987) Residential satisfaction: Its uses

and limitations in housing research, in Vliet, W.V., Choldin, H., Michelson, W., and Popenoe,D. (eds.).Housing and Neighbourhoods: Theoretical and Empirical Contributions, Greenwood

Press, Westport, Connecticut.

Karn, V. and Sheridan, L. (1994) New Homes in the 1990s: A study of design, space andamenity in housing association and private sector housing, Joseph Rowntree Foundation

and the University of Manchester, Manchester.

McCray, J.W. and Day, S.S. (1977) Housing Values, Aspirations and Satisfactions as Indicatorsof Housing Needs, Home Economics, Vol.5, No.4, pp.244-254.

Ogu, V.I. (2002) Urban Residential Satisfaction and the Planning Implications in a Developing

World Context: The Example of Benin City, Nigeria, International Planning Studies, Vol.7,No.1, pp. 37-53.

Onibokun, A.G. (1974). Evaluating Consumers Satisfaction with Housing: An Application of a

System Approach,Journal of American Institute of Planners, 40(3): 189-200

Parker, C. and Mathews, B.P (2001) Customer Satisfaction: Contrasting Academic and Consumers

Interpretations, Marketing Intelligence and Planning, Vol.19, No.1, pp.38-46.

Satsangi, M. and Kearns, A. (1992) The Use and Interpretation of Tenant Satisfaction Surveysin British Social Housing, Environment and Planning, Vol10, No.4, pp.317-331.

Theodori, G.L. (2001) Examining the Effects of Community Satisfaction and Attachment on

Individual Well-being, Rural Sociology, Vol.4, No.6, pp.618-628.

Ukoha, O. and Beamish, J. (1997) Assessment of Residents Satisfaction with Public Housingin Abuja, Nigeria, Habitat International, Vol.21, No.4, pp.445-460.

UN Habitat (1996)An Urbanizing World, Oxford University Press, Oxford.



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