Housing Inventory Losses as a Requirement for New Construction

摘要

This monograph treats housing inventory losses as a requirement for new construction, basing this approach on recent experience and practice in the United States. Housing losses are considered to be one of the requirements for new construction because the households which were housed in the lost units must be rehoused in other units. New construction is the most direct way of replacing lost units and continuing to house the same population. It is a different requirement than that arising from population growth and the formation of new additional households. Housing inventory losses can be distinguished on the basis of whether they are temporary and retrievable in nature or are permanent in nature. Policies to deal with losses should make this distinction. Within each of the two general categories of losses there are several types of losses, some of which may cause measurement problems and also require different policies. Many retrievable losses return to the housing inventory, and additional housing units are produced from conversions of both residential and nonresidential structures. Thus, non - new - construction adds an important source of housing supply to offset losses, particularly in years of lower new construction. The characteristics of losses differ from those of new construction, reflecting rising housing standards and inventory upgrading, shifts in preferences for tenure and structure - type, and population mobility and migration patterns. Further research is needed to determine what proportions and types of retrievable losses return to the housing inventory and to improve estimates of non - new - construction additions to the inventory. A total of 11 tables are supplied.