Housing in a changing neighborhood
(A.A. 2022/23)
Neighbourhood change is both a consequence and a driver of transformations in the housing sector. In traditionally working-class areas, a particularly appealing building stock can attract higher-income social groups, triggering new investments, rising property values, and ultimately a decline in housing affordability. At the same time, broader contextual changes—such as investments in beautification or infrastructure—can also boost an area’s attractiveness, leading to increased development of new housing or major renovations of existing buildings. Regardless of the factors behind it, neighbourhood change presents significant challenges to housing accessibility and remains a critical focus for urban policy and planning. In the 2022/23 course, students explored the complex relationship between housing dynamics and neighbourhood change through a real-world case study in Milan, focusing on the diverse and increasingly sought-after areas of NoLo and Via Padova. Their work addressed key issues such as housing affordability, speculative real estate markets, and the housing trajectories of specific communities and social groups.
Speculative investments and neighbourhood change: the real-estate auctions market in Nolo
Nolo is an attractive and rapidly changing neighbourhood, undergoing a major regeneration process that reflects broader transformations across the city. In this context, the evolutions of the housing supply have played a central role, but interestingly, a specific niche market – that of public auctions linked to dispossession – has been pivotal in triggering and accelerating the neighbourhood’s transformation. Nolo is among the neighbourhoods with the highest rates of foreclosure sales, drawing the attention of those interested in speculative real estate operations. The video explores this dynamic and its implications, tracing the process back to the 1990s, when NoLo was a key destination for international migrant workers.
Housing (un)affordability in a changing neighbourhood: the case of Nolo
NoLo, often seen as a symbol of the rapid and unregulated gentrification taking place in Milan, has shifted from a traditionally working-class neighbourhood to a vibrant hub for young creative professionals and artists. This transformation has brought with it significant challenges, particularly around housing affordability and urban change. Housing transformations have played a major role in this process, with hundreds of new dwellings being built through densification or the repurposing of existing structures. How are these changes affecting the housing supply—and, more importantly, the possibility of people who live there accessing it? This is what the video seeks to explore these issues by focusing on how housing affordability is changing in such an evolving context.