Making temporary homes

A housing shortage has been building up in the Netherlands in the last 30 years. Decreasing the housing shortage takes time, while people need a place to live now. Temporarily transforming vacant buildings into housing could reduce this need by providing the housing market with time to catch up. Can different user perspectives be included in housing design so all residents can easily make their home? A review of literature from housing studies, indoor environmental quality, architectural design and environmental psychology, for students, starters on the housing market and refugees accepted for permanent residency, indicated that using meanings of home could benefit housing design. Six factors were identified using a questionnaire that was developed to identify differences in meanings of home and what activities people engaged in, linked to indoor environmental preferences they had for those activities. Qualitative methods were used to better understand what people do to make a home. Three groups of activities were identified that reflect how home is a place built with meanings, through the use of objects, decorations, and the presence of other people. The results of a workshop with professionals indicated that meanings of home can be organised on three axes and that activities operate on different time frames (continuous, long-term, and short-term, respectively). This means that small actions, too, can contribute to creating a home, though which specific actions help someone and which do not, depend on the individual. The results can be used for housing design when architects and psychologists work together.