Developing Country Studies www.iiste.org ISSN 2224-607X (Paper) ISSN 2225-0565 (Online) Vol.8, No.10, 2018 36 Socio-economic Determinants of Housing Satisfaction Among Middle-Income Households in Owerri, Nigeria Chinwe Okpoechi Department of Architecture, Federal Polytechnic Nekede, Imo state. Nigeria Abstract Housing provision in Nigeria has not only been plagued by insufficiency in numbers, but also by inadequacies in quality. Housing quality is a predictor of housing adequacy. Adequate housing is housing that is in congruence with a family’s needs and social status. Achieving this balance creates the possibility of residents experiencing satisfaction with their housing. Housing satisfaction must therefore be viewed as a critical element in housing provision, as it can substantially impact on the overall well-being of housing residents. This study addresses housing satisfaction among the middle-income in Nigeria, and the roles if any, socio-economic factors play in housing satisfaction among this income group. A total of 344 middle income households drawn from multi-stage sampling, were studied. Data collection was through administration of a structured questionnaire, and physical appraisal of housing formation in the study area. The socio-economic variables tested in the study are Income, Family size, Family structure, Level of education, Nature of employment, and Socialisation habits. Logistic regression test, with the logit dichotomous model was used for the analysis. The results of the study show that the socio-economic characteristics which significantly affect housing satisfaction among the middle-income group in Nigeria are Income, Nature of employment, and Socialisation habits. The other socio-economic variables could be accommodated by residents in their housing, if these three were adequately considered from inception. It is the conclusion of this study that housing design for this income group must place emphasis on affordable, cost-effective, and space-efficient housing, which will truly reflect good quality environments, and increase residents’ satisfaction with their housing. Keywords: Housing satisfaction, Mass housing, Middle-income, Nigeria, Socio-economic 1. Introduction The Federal Government of Nigeria has over the years, made efforts to provide housing for its population, particularly the low and middle-income groups. Government intervention in mass housing in Nigeria dates back to pre-independence era (Onibokun, 1975; Aribigbola, 2000). Post-independence forays into mass housing by the government have included the formation of National Council on Housing in 1971, instituting the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), and establishment of housing corporations across the different regions in the country (UN-HABITAT, 1993). Further interventions were in the form of the National Housing Policy of 1991; revised in 2006, the campaign for Housing for all by the year 2000, among others. Private property developers on their part have followed up, heeding the call for housing for all, by developing housing schemes targeting mainly the middle and high-income groups. One of such projects is the 324-units of residential houses in ELIM housing estate Enugu, commissioned on 11 th July 2014, financed by Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) using the resources of the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme, and in partnership with a private sector developer. These housing schemes, visible in almost every urban area in the country, make up the public housing stock, as they are usually prototype buildings arranged in housing estates, and open to public acquisition and use. Mass housing estates are typically developed along broad income stratifications, to capture a range of residents that fall within the stated categories. However, in spite of seeming income similarities among residents, different families have their peculiarities bordering on socio-economic factors, which often translate to functional requirements that demand serious considerations in their housing designs. It is obvious that in mass housing development, the possibility for housing designs to be tailored to the specific individual needs of every one of the housing residents, does not exist, in part due to the sheer numbers of housing units to be provided, in addition to the apparent anonymity of the eventual residents at the point of inception of the housing development. These factors notwithstanding, for mass housing to adequately meet the needs of its residents, it is important that mean functional housing design needs for each income category are established. These functional requirements should expectedly reflect the socio-economic characteristics of the population to be housed. Presently, it appears that determination of the housing design needs for each group of consumers, based on the understanding of their socio-economic characteristics, usually does not precede the development of the schemes, judging by the resultant dislocation of some of the schemes, like the Festac and Shagari schemes in Lagos and across the country (Njoku, 2014). Improper articulation of housing schemes can result in inadequate housing which can lead to dissatisfaction among housing residents. This dissatisfaction is oftentimes expressed in unauthorised and poorly planned alterations to the houses, poor maintenance, and overall deterioration of the housing neighbourhoods, which can have implications for the general welfare of the residents.