RESIDENTS' SATISFACTION ON UPGRADED PUBLIC HOUSING

Abstract

Residential satisfaction is an important criterion in describing the quality of life of the inhabitants of a living environment, and also as a trigger factor in affecting residential mobility. This study assesses residents' satisfaction of upgraded public housing estates. Since a decade ago, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) has been continuously upgrading the physical environment of the older public estates through various upgrading programmes, the major one being notably the Main Upgrading Programme (MUP). With rising standards of living and expectations, it is therefore timely to examine residents' satisfaction with the MUP. The results found that, among the three categories of upgraded works (precinct, block and unit), respondents were most satisfied with upgrading within the block, followed by within the unit and precinct. These fell within the "Satisfied" range with scores registering 3.68, 3.62 and 3.58 respectively. In addition, it was also found that Bedok residents were the most satisfied among the 5 study areas. On the whole, the respondents expressed high levels of satisfaction with an overall mean of 0.87. Such findings will provide a better understanding of how respondents perceive the upgraded works and help the HDB in planning future MUP works.