Social change and the development of neighborhoods: A demand-oriented decision-making aid for stakeholders in the housing sector

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Rainer Danielzyk; Professor Dr. Sebastian Lentz; Professor Dr. Claus-Christian Wiegandt
• Subject Area: Human Geography
• Term: from 2013 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 233989331

The submitted project is building upon the previous findings of the completed DFG-fund project, jointly conducted by the three applicants over the last two years. Aim of the knowledge transfer project is to provide a decision-making aid enabling stakeholders of the housing sector to evaluate the influence of medium- and long-term social trends on the development of neighborhoods and residential locations. The new project is designed as joint venture of the three applicants, together with three different application partners, all engaged in the housing sector. Bringing together the expertise of two different housing corporations and one big municipality which is very active in housing policies, a handbook for a procedure will be developed and tested in order to adjust the requirements of consumers with the provider s course of action. The three application partners formart NRW Hochtief Solutions as private real estate developer, the UNITAS eG Leipzig as residential cooperative, and the City of Dortmund as big and strategically engaged municipality cover a wide range of potential stakeholders in the field of the housing sector. The development of the evaluation tool consists of three modules: The first module targets to identify crucial location characteristics from the perspective of consumers. Here, the empirical results of the previous DFG-fund project, as well as the in-depth knowledge of the application partners are a sound basis for developing a decision-making aid. The second module is about the evaluation of location characteristics of different stock districts and development areas. In a third module the demand from the consumer s perspective and the characteristics of stock districts and development areas are linked via different scenarios. Medium- and long-term social trends will be considered and development opportunities will be revealed. These three modules are compiled using case study areas within the three regions Cologne/Bonn, Leipzig/Halle and Eastern Ruhr Area where the instrument and its procedures will be tested. By building upon the insights in three different regions, the whole spectrum of growing, stagnating and shrinking urban regions is covered, as well as different factors that can influence housing markets. The handbook as the key product of the project will be a guideline for a transferable instrument that can be used by different stakeholders in the housing sector and is applicable to different types of neighborhoods in other regions. The scenarios contribute particularly to a qualitative differentiated linkage of demand and supply in stock as well as development areas.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants (Transfer Project)
• Participating Institution: HOCHTIEF Solutions AG; formart NRW; Stadt Dortmund; Wohnungsgenossenschaft UNITAS eG