MHN Asks: Can Design Really Reduce Affordable Housing Development Costs?

Effective design can not only enhance residents’ life quality, but also address sustainability issues and ensure community integration, all while tackling the broader housing affordability challenge. Margi Glavovic Nothard, founder & design director of Glavovic Studio since 1999, knows this firsthand.

Motivated by a desire to make an impact, her projects balance cost-effectiveness with creative design, adhere to regulatory standards and cater to diverse community needs. Here’s how Glavovic Studio navigates these complexities to create practical and affordable housing solutions.

In what ways can architecture and design make housing more affordable?

Glavovic Nothard: Architecture plays a crucial role in making housing more affordable. There are many avenues for increasing affordability and we can reduce building costs—up to a point.

Holistically, the more sustainable a project, the lower the carbon footprint, and the lower the costs of development over time. By selecting materials and products that consume less energy and reduce waste, developments become more affordable. One of the challenges of this approach is that a developer may be interested in short-term gains, as they are selling the development, so the holistic management of the property is not taken into consideration as much as needed, with short-term cost savings and long-term increased costs.

Careful site selection can also reduce overall costs. Certain sites will be more expensive to develop based on the site’s environmental condition, location and regulatory restrictions.

Then there’s the adaptation of existing buildings, rather than new construction. This adaptive-reuse process, which includes changes of uses to residential, can be faster and less expensive than new construction. Adaptive reuse is also good for the environment, as it reduces the development’s overall carbon footprint while retaining community and cultural values.

What are some of the biggest challenges in affordable housing design, and how do you overcome them?

Glavovic Nothard: There are many challenges such as balancing cost-effectiveness with design excellence and high quality, meeting the regulatory standards set by cities and counties, and addressing community needs. Creative problem-solving and collaboration help to overcome such hurdles. A visionary client is essential to solving these problems, since designing and building affordable housing comes down to a team effort. The best projects are representative of teamwork in all parts of the process.

Tell us some details about one of your affordable housing projects and the impact it had on the community it serves.

Glavovic Nothard: Dr. Kennedy Homes is one example that has had a resoundingly positive community impact. Located in a historic South Florida district, the previously blighted site was developed as affordable housing by the City of Fort Lauderdale’s Housing Authority. Working closely with the Sailboat Bend community and existing site residents, the project initially included strong opposition and strong support on both sides. But our goal was to bring the community together with a sensitive development that respected the surrounding context and provided residents with a beautiful place to thrive.

Our approach involved a series of independent structures within the larger complex and a part of the whole, but with separate courtyards, entrances and connections to the greater whole. The quality of life for the residents drastically improved, with a reduction in crime rates before and after construction, walkability to work, and connectivity to two bus stops on the property.

One of the most enlightening comments I get from folks who drive past the development is, ‘It doesn’t look like affordable housing.’ This reveals how we immediately associate affordable housing with something negative—less than other. And that is problematic: If we don’t see housing affordability as important for everyone, we diminish the resources and opportunities to create it more readily. We can and should all live in homes that contribute positively to our world—visually, too.

Are there any specific design strategies or architectural approaches your firm employs to tackle housing affordability?

Glavovic Nothard: Glavovic Studio employs several innovative techniques, including prefabricated volumetric modular construction and adaptive reuse. These approaches streamline processes and reduce costs. In downtown Los Angeles—one of the least affordable areas in the U.S.—we are designing two large projects: One will be the first volumetric modular residential building and the other is an adaptation of an existing 1924 commercial building into affordable housing.

Within each design, we seek replicability and repetition for units, limited structural complexity, and consideration of the long-term residents’ housing security needs. This includes preventing utility costs from increasing each year through a thoughtful consideration of reduced heat gain, use of low-water-consumption materials, and a selection of materials that are low-maintenance and sustainable.

Can you elaborate on the construction techniques you mentioned and how they contribute to reducing housing costs?

Glavovic Nothard: Prefabricated volumetric modular construction allows for efficient assembly, while adaptive reuse repurposes existing structures. Both contribute to cost reductions. Volumetric modular construction is where the entire unit module is prefabricated in a factory and delivered to the site for installation, with all finishes and fixtures already installed. The onsite work includes connecting the utilities and façade components. This can save substantial time which, in turn, is a cost-saver though the basic construction costs are typically cost-neutral. Other prefabricated systems include conventional construction of the core and shell with modular kitchens and bathrooms.

Adaptive reuse is the least expensive approach to affordable housing and the most sustainable, but opportunities for saving depend greatly on the suitability of the existing building to the conversion which is being designed. For example, a hotel or motel can readily be modified for affordable housing, as it already includes partitions, plumbing, electrical and mechanical systems reducing costs substantially. Similarly, amenity spaces can be refurbished for common-area residential uses. 

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What role does sustainable architecture play in all this? How do you balance affordability with environmental sustainability in your designs?

Glavovic Nothard: Sustainable architecture and resilient design consist of a vast catalog of impactful opportunities to reduce our carbon footprint. In some real estate markets around the world, all buildings for sale must include an energy rating system, so that consumers understand the long-term efficiency and costs of maintaining the building. This built-in competitive aspect to real estate must find its way into the U.S. market to assist in reducing costs from energy consumption and increasing housing security and product choices.

In many of our housing developments, we must reduce common areas and amenities to save on overall square footage, prioritizing the units over the common areas. This requires a partnership with municipalities to ensure that public parks and services support denser development.

Glavovic Studio approaches most of our resilient affordable housing design solutions by looking at the building envelope as the area where we can articulate and impact the aesthetics of the building, with a dense overall massing to maximize the number of units and provide a comfortable living experience. There are no aspects of design that cannot work towards increased efficiency and greater environmental sustainability.

What policies and models are necessary to support effective design and drive change in the long run?

Glavovic Nothard: Effective policies and models must incentivize affordable housing design and reduce barriers for development. Trends like co-housing, mixed-use developments and community-driven initiatives can further address affordability. Policies that reduce parking requirements must also be encouraged and supported with increased public transportation.

The most important reform that cities can implement is a faster, more streamlined approval process. We are working on several 100 percent low-income and very low-income housing developments. Cities and counties should implement an emergency approval process for all affordable housing developments, with much faster maximum review times than is currently the case. This is significant not only because of the urgent need for housing, but also because the longer it takes for a project to get built, the higher the costs. Approval processes should take days, not months or years.

Are there any other trends or innovations in architecture and urban design that could further address housing affordability?

Glavovic Nothard: In recent years, affordable housing needs have been more clearly communicated in the media, and some laws are being modified to support more affordable housing. One such policy is Florida’s Live Local Act, which supersedes local ordinances in certain cases, enabling developments that qualify to preempt established density, height and allowable uses to increase the availability of affordable housing, and with minimum guarantees for 40 percent affordable units. In Los Angeles, a recent directive from the Mayor’s office limits the review times for site plan approval for developments that comply with by-right zoning, for instance.

On the construction side, most materials are now expected to incorporate recycled products, to be energy- and resource-efficient, and to promote the well-being of the user. However, the traditional way of building in South Florida—as one example—with cement and concrete is far cheaper than other methods, and demand continues to increase. Widely used in construction, concrete poses significant sustainability challenges due to its substantial carbon footprint. Concrete production accounts for seven percent of global carbon emissions and, as the world’s most-used building material, concrete faces increasing demand due to urbanization and population growth. Given such challenges, sustainable alternatives are crucial for a net-zero global economy.

So how do you expect affordable housing design to evolve?

Glavovic Nothard: Fundamentally, extremely high demands and needs will place more importance on this issue. Although change is slow, coupled with technological advances and increased awareness, affordable housing design will incorporate more innovative solutions and community-centric approaches. Large, non-developer companies are entering the housing design and fabrication market and, in many cases, bring a technology background that favors disruption.

People will also live in smaller units, in a variety of co-living spaces and seek out community-oriented activities and spaces that supplement micro and shared living spaces. We are working on a co-living space currently, where independent units with ensuite bathrooms and shared kitchens are being designed—it’s a mix of Airbnb and micro units. I expect more of these options and solutions to become available in most U.S. urban cores.

Senior living will also be redefined, where active seniors will want independent living and co-living in culturally and environmentally positive spaces, rather than being sequestered in gated communities and disengaged from society. 

What advice would you give to young architects and designers who want to make a positive impact on housing affordability and urban resilience?

Glavovic Nothard: Prioritize research, collaboration, creativity and innovation. Become an active advocate for resilient, socially conscious design. Engage with communities and stay adaptable in a dynamic field. Continue to use technology in a positive way, embracing the opportunities of innovative software and systems like artificial intelligence. Stay on mission, don’t take ‘no’ for an answer, and be brave!