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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss residents' views of social and physical environments in a co‐housing and in a senior housing setting in Finland. Also, the study aims to point out important connections between well‐being and built environment.Design/methodology/approachThe data include interviews and survey responses gathered in the cases. The results and analysis are presented at different case study levels, with the discussion and conclusions following this.FindingsThe findings show that the physical environment and common areas have an important role to activate residents. When well‐designed common areas exist, a higher level of engagement can be achieved by getting residents involved in the planning and running of activities.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper discusses residents' experiences in two Finnish housing settings and it focuses on the housing market in Finland.Practical implicationsThe findings encourage investors and housing operators to design and invest common areas which could activate residents and create social contacts. Also, investors have to pay attention to the way these developments are managed.Originality/valueThis study is the first to investigate the Finnish co‐housing setting and compare social and physical environments in a co‐housing and a senior house.

This article examines whether cluster analysis can be used to identify groups of Finnish residents with similar housing preferences. Because homebuilders in Finland have been providing relatively homogeneous products to an increasingly diverse population, current housing may not represent the occupiers' preferences so a segmentation approach relying on socioeconomic characteristics and expressed preferences may not be sufficient. We use data collected via questionnaire in a principal component analysis followed by a hierarchical cluster analysis to determine whether different combinations of housing attributes are important to groups of residents. We can identify four clusters of housing residents based on important characteristics when looking for a house. The clusters describe Finnish people in different phases of the life cycle and with different preferences based on their recreational activities and financial expenditures. Mass customization of housing could be used to better appeal to these different clusters of consumers who share similar preferences, increasing consumer satisfaction and improving profitability.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the relation between dissatisfaction with housing conditions and considering moving among residents of Finnish rental multifamily buildings. The paper examines physical attributes, socioeconomic factors, and subjective opinions related to housing conditions and satisfaction with housing. Design/methodology/approach – Logistic regression analysis is used to examine survey data to analyse which factors contribute to dissatisfaction with the housing unit and the apartment building and whether dissatisfaction is related to consideration of moving. Findings – The findings indicate that dissatisfaction with the building and individual housing unit are associated with greater probability of considering moving. Satisfaction with kitchen, living room, storage, and building age are the most important indicators of satisfaction with the housing unit, and satisfaction with living room, bathroom, storage, and building age are associated with satisfaction with the apartment building. These are the areas in which landlords could invest in renovations to increase satisfaction in an attempt to reduce turnover. Research limitations/implications – The study is conducted with Finnish data only. The sample is not a representative sample of the Finnish population. A longitudinal study would be needed to determine whether dissatisfied residents indending to move actually change residence. Originality/value – This study is the first of its kind in the Finnish housing market. It tests a general model that has been suggested to be customized to local conditions. In addition, much of the research on this topic is more than 20 years old. Examination of the model under current housing and socioeconomic conditions is necessary to determine if relationships have changed over time.

Houses are expensive illiquid long-lived assets traded in an imperfect market. One of the imperfections is knowledge about legal interests such as ground leases. Uncertainty surrounding the rights, interests, and long-term costs of owners of houses constructed on land leased from the government may affect house prices relative to houses built on fee simple land. This paper uses regression analysis of sales price of large sample of condominium transactions in Helsinki to examine the effect ground leases have on house sales. We find that condominiums constructed on leased lots sell at 4% discount relative to houses on freehold lots in the same market.

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Purpose Even as many countries are facing changes in demographic profile and new types of senior housing developments are becoming more important, there is limited evidence for the development impact of a senior house on surrounding residential property values. The purpose of this paper is to address the void in knowledge, investigating the impact of senior house developments on apartment values in Tampere, Finland. Design/methodology/approach To specify valuation effects of proximate senior house development projects, advanced research design combining propensity score matching procedure and hedonic pricing models is used. Findings The results show that a senior house development has a significant positive impact on proximate residential property values within a 500 metre radius. The impact is found to be the highest in underdeveloped neighbourhoods. Nevertheless, in neighbourhoods where property values and demand for housing units are higher and senior house developments fall into the criteria of infill development, a premium is lower, but still statistically significant and notable in magnitude. Research limitations/implications This paper studies apartment values only in Tampere, Finland, and it is important to notice that local regulations and market conditions may have a notable impact on the outcomes from senior house developments. Originality/value This study is the first of its kind to address a number of empirical issues and provide with statistically significant evidence for positive impacts from senior house developments – encouraging investors and developers to build senior houses.

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