Role of micro-housing in fulfilling middle-income housing demand in urban areas: Sri Lankan perspective

Abstract

Urbanisation and population growth challenge the housing market in urban areas globally. The unavailability of sufficient lands, limited housing spaces, high demand and high housing prices caused housing unaffordability. Consequently, micro-living has been successfully implemented in high-density urban areas worldwide to address housing unaffordability. In Sri Lanka, middle-income households in Colombo are the most vulnerable to housing unaffordability. Accordingly, this research aimed to investigate the suitability of micro-housing to address the issues in middle-income households in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The aim was accomplished through a qualitative approach by collecting data through expert interviews and analysing through content analysis with manual coding. Findings revealed the unavailability of land and high land prices as the major challenges faced by the middle-income housing market in Colombo. Importantly, the findings acknowledged Micro Houses (MHs) and Micro Apartments (MAs) as affordable housing options that effectively address the issues. The demand and the social acceptance of MHs and MAs in Colombo are led by two middle-income groups i.e. (i) youngsters, and (ii) elderly retirees. Herein, ease of maintenance and willingness to modernise were the main positive perceptions. In contrast, limited space and usage of foldable furniture cause negative perceptions. Construction and operation costs of MHs and MAs can be lowered by maximising natural lighting and ventilation and minimising material wastage. However, operational costs will not be changed considerably. Nonetheless, prevailing building codes and regulations barrier the implementation of micro-living in Colombo.