The assessment of quality of suburban building stock and quality standards

Abstract

Suburban Housing in Europe accounts for a significant portion of all European urban heritage. Therefore the quality of the existing building stock has a significant role and potential when addressing the improvement of the quality of life. Working Group 2 of COST Action TU0701 was active on Task 2 addressing the definition of criteria and parameters to assess the quality of suburban housing estates considering user needs and social factors influencing the quality of life. The Working Group was also active on Task 4 and addressed the definition of quality standards for assessing the level of acceptable quality and the non-technical factors to be considered when estimating the actual value of a suburban housing estate and in developing a refurbishment programme. The methodology was based on case studies and quality standards from 14 different European countries. The Indicators Matrix was developed as a tool to assess the quality of the suburban building stock. The papers presented in this chapter further address aspects of quality of the suburban building stock and suburban areas.