Abstract:
This paper compares the space standards set for affordable housing in Portugal and in
São Paulo Municipality (Brazil), and seeks explanations for differences in the socioeconomic
context of each territory. The Controlled Cost Housing (CCH) in Portugal and
the housing built within the program My Home My Life (MHML) in São Paulo
Municipality are studied. Three research questions are addressed: Which program has
more demanding space standards? Which social-economic conditions explain the
differences in space standards? How different space standards influence the users’
satisfaction? To answer these questions, space standards, socio-economic indicators and
the users’ satisfaction are compared. Space standards compared the number and type of
rooms, the internal floor area of dwellings, the size of rooms, and the size of furniture
and equipment. The study has shown that space standards set for CCH are more
demanding than those set for MHML program. For instance, a CCH dwelling has
almost two times the gross area of a MHML dwelling with the same number of rooms.
The housing deficit, the low income of poor households and the option to sell highly
subsidized affordable housing are reasons that justify the low space standards in São
Paulo Municipality when compared to Portugal. Although affordable houses are
substantially smaller in São Paulo Municipality, the satisfaction level of dwellers with
the size of dwellings is higher. Therefore, a direct link between space standards and
users’ satisfaction cannot be set. We conclude that different political options on how to
provide housing to low income households directly influence the space standards set for
dwellings.
