The delivery of low-cost housing in the Hillside view integrated development project in the Free State

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to analyse the delivery of low-cost housing by the Free State Department of Human Settlements using the Hillside View Integrated Development as a case study. The study identified factors which affected the provision of low-cost housing in Hillside View Integrated Development. The study further sought to highlight to the Free State Department of Human Settlements the factors and challenges related to the implementation process which impeded the achievement of the agreed upon targets. The study adopted the case study design which investigated the delivery of low-cost housing in the Hillside View Integrated Development in the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality. To collect data, semi-structured interviews were carried out from various participants, for example, policy implementers (senior government officials), housing beneficiaries, a developer, and the estate agent. Furthermore, secondary data was utilised to confirm the targets achieved by the Department of Human Settlements for the 2014-2019 MTSF period. The study revealed that although the post-apartheid state had planned to deliver low-cost housing opportunities since 1994 for South Africans, the housing backlog has continued to outpace delivery. Furthermore, based on the gathered data, this study revealed that the delivery of low-cost housing in the Free State Department of Human Settlements has been marred by multiple challenges. The Free State Department of Human Settlements (hereinafter, the FSDHS) did not achieve the 2014-2019 Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) targets based on the following key performance areas; Construction of top structures (Braking New Ground (BNG) houses, Military Veterans, Finance-Linked Individual Subsidy Programme (FLISP), Land Restitution Programme (LRP) and Individual subsidies); Installation of serviced sites (sewer, water connections infrastructure) and the delivery of title deeds. On a positive note, the FSDHS met the following 2014-2019 MTSF targets; procurement of land suitable for human settlements and the development of community residential units. The extensive reviewed literature also revealed that the delivery of low-cost housing by government remains an evasive target due to, amongst other things, the high rate of unemployment, ever increasing demand for urbanisation and inward migration, population growth, and the right to decent housing as enshrined in the Constitution.