Housing status holders: an insight in the decision-making process. A case study in Maastricht and Nijmegen

Abstract

This study focuses on the question of how the actors involved in Maastricht and Nijmegen, view the housing problems of status holders and what solutions they propose to avoid this problem. During the interviews, questions were asked about whether or not the housing problem was recognised, the current housing process, bottlenecks in current policy, possible solutions for these bottlenecks and the degree of cooperation and communication between the actors. The results of the interviews show that the housing process is a complex process, involving many different actors and problems. In addition, various problems are mentioned with regard to the current housing policy. The increasing flow of refugees is proving to be a major challenge, because it puts both the housing market and the asylum seekers' centres under great pressure. Solutions from the various actors focus on the distribution of beneficiaries across the city, promoting their integration, tackling the negative feelings about their housing and on concluding the expectations of status holders themselves. A SWOT analysis and associated confrontation matrix will have to show which measure is best to escape the current housing problems of status holders.