Government subsidies : are the beneficiaries happy with their houses? : a case study of France, Edendale, Pietermaritzburg.

Abstract

In 1994 the new government introduced a subsidy scheme where the beneficiaries are provided with houses through housing projects. The houses have been vastly criticised for being small and poorly built. The sites provided are perceived to be small. The recreational facilities are perceived to be non existent and educational facilities scarce. The places where the projects are, is perceived to be far away from job opportunities. A sample of 200 beneficiaries was drawn from 1024 beneficiaries residing in the housing project in the area of France, Edendale in Pietermaritzburg, Phases 1 and 11. In this study, the respondents were composed of 32.9% males and 67.1% females. The respondent’s age group who participated in this project was 3.9% between 0-21 years, 28.9% between 22-35 years, 34.2% between 36-45 years, 16.4% between 46-55 years, and 11.8% between 55- 65 years and 4.6% did not reveal their age status. 80.9%, indicated they were owners of the houses, 6.6% indicated that they were not and those that did not reply are 12.5%. The study is descriptive in nature and explored the extent to which the beneficiaries were happy with their houses. The study explored the perceptions on the size of the sites, the small starter houses, the sanitation provided and the location of the houses. The findings suggest that the provision of sustainable housing in South Africa is still a challenge. The houses are still located far from the places of work and they are so small and there is overcrowding. The sizes of the sites are small and the sanitation provided unacceptable. The recreational facilities are nonexistent. Beneficiaries expressed dissatisfaction with the educational facilities.