“I live in a small bungalow. It is made of earth-abundant materials like wood and stucco, with a modest concrete foundation. It has lasted about 100 years. I have solar panels that produce enough electricity to power my house, an EV [Electric Vehicle], and part of the electricity to needed to run a heat pump (haven't transitioned two those last two yet). I think suburbs of the future can be green and energy efficient. We don't have to live in [high-rise] towers.” Reader Comment to Berkeleyside opinion piece about the need to build high-rise apartment buildings to combat climate change; posted June 1, 2022
Environmental activists have long favored greater urban density as an essential tool to achieve significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. By “urban density”, they mostly mean more high-rise apartments and fewer single-family homes. Problem is, most Americans want to live, not just in single-family homes, but in low-density neighborhoods. Not only do most Americans prefer single-family homes to tall apartment buildings, they strongly prefer single-family homes to cute little triplexes:
And most Americans prefer larger houses in drivable communities to smaller houses in walkable communities, no matter their age, race or ethnicity:
It might be tempting to dismiss housing preferences as merely a matter of taste or culture, which can evolve with the proper incentives or education. However, global studies have consistently found that high-rise apartment living is a net negative for most people, especially families and children, and regardless of culture, nationality, or aesthetic traditions. Here’s a smattering of what researchers have found:
The Consequences of Living in High-Rise Buildings (Gifford, 2007):
This review summarizes the results of research on the influences of high-rise buildings on residents' experiences of the building, satisfaction, preferences, social behavior, crime and fear of crime, children, mental health and suicide…the literature suggests that high-rises are less satisfactory than other housing forms for most people, that they are not optimal for children, that social relations are more impersonal and helping behavior is less than in other housing forms, that crime and fear of crime are greater, and that they may independently account for some suicides.
Psychological and social impacts of high-rise buildings: a review of the post-occupancy evaluation literature (Kalantari & Shepley, 2021)
Rapid global urbanization has led to a construction boom in high-rise buildings, and this trend seems unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. But what are the social, psychological, and behavioral effects of living and working in high-rise environments? …The overview suggests that certain negative psychological and social impacts have been consistently associated with high-rise environments, particularly for lower-income populations.
Modeling Social Impacts of High-Rise Residential Buildings during the Post-Occupancy Phase…A Case Study (Dwijendra, Akhmadeev et al, 2021)
There are numerous risks associated with high-rise buildings...The most significant and influential impacts identified by this study were anti-social behavior, lack of social cohesion, and lack of social contact with neighbors.
So what’s a climate-friendly alternative to high-rise urban density? A mix of low-rise multifamily buildings and single-family homes, ideally in walkable communities or at most a short drive away from frequent destinations. Of course, this is all assuming the buildings, homes, communities and modes of transportation achieve meaningful reductions in GHG emissions through technology fixes and changes in human behavior.
Next: How to reduce GHG emissions related to the construction of single-family homes.
After That: Getting to Net-Zero in Single-Family Homes
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References:
Millennials Still Want Single-Family Homes, Even if it Means a Long Commute By Dana Anderson/Redfin News November 21, 2019. Updated on October 6th, 2020
Survey: Americans prefer single-family homes, low-density living By Randal O'Toole/Complete Colorado April 29, 2022
Dwijendra, N. K. A., R. Akhmadeev, et al. (2021). "Modeling Social Impacts of High-Rise Residential Buildings during the Post-Occupancy Phase Using DEMATEL Method: A Case Study." Buildings 11(11): 504. https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/11/11/504
Richard Tucker, Fiona Andrews, Louise Johnson & Jasmine Palmer (2021) Architects’ professional perspectives on child- and family-friendly apartment design in Australia, Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, DOI: 10.1080/13467581.2021.1972813
Robert Gifford (2007) The Consequences of Living in High-Rise Buildings, Architectural Science Review, 50:1, 2-17, DOI: 10.3763/asre.2007.5002
Saleh Kalantari & Mardelle Shepley (2021) Psychological and social impacts of high-rise buildings: a review of the post-occupancy evaluation literature; Housing Studies, 36:8, 1147-1176, DOI: 10.1080/02673037.2020.1752630