Iran’s Housing Policy Must Recognise Changing Lifestyles

Iran’s housing policy must formally recognise the profound shifts in lifestyle and marriage patterns within society and be redesigned accordingly. Davood Bidar, a board member of the Tehran Province Association of Builders and Developers, spoke to ‘SAMA’ about the urgent need to change the perspective on housing.

Referring to recent statistics on the number of single individuals in the country, he stated that while there is disagreement and statistical ambiguity regarding certain figures—such as the 42 million figure—national policymaking should not be based on unverified data. The core issue is that Iranian society is changing: the age of marriage has risen, some young people are forming families later, households have become smaller, and a significant group of citizens live alone during certain periods of their lives.

Bidar added that a young person deciding to marry today faces the greatest obstacle to starting a shared life: securing housing. These transformations are not merely a demographic issue but constitute a serious problem in the country’s housing and urban development policymaking.

Are we still building today’s housing for yesterday’s family?

The expert noted that one of the fundamental flaws in Iran’s housing policy is the gap between real societal changes and the defined regulations. He remarked that when household size, marriage age, purchasing power, and living patterns change, the housing product must also change. One cannot analyse the society of 2026 with the same assumptions that existed for families decades ago.

He stressed that housing is not an ordinary commodity, and the design and construction of a project can take several years. Therefore, the building we construct today must meet society’s needs for years to come. The developer and policymaker must ask themselves: what type of home will the people who are going to live in these cities five or ten years from now need?

Single people are also citizens of this country and need housing

In another part of the conversation, Bidar said that housing policy must also see the reality of single individuals’ lives. Recognising the housing needs of this group does not mean promoting single life; rather, intelligent policymaking must simultaneously pursue two paths: facilitating the conditions for family formation for young couples, and not ignoring the real needs of people who currently live alone.

He added that a single person also needs safe, suitable housing commensurate with their income. A young person wanting to marry should not be forced, from day one of starting a two-person life, to pay for a home designed for a four- or five-person household. A young couple’s first home does not necessarily have to be their lifelong home, and the possibility of creating a ‘housing ladder’ must be provided so that young people can start their lives in a smaller unit and move to larger units as their income increases.

Smaller floor area does not mean lower quality

The board member of the Builders and Developers Association, pointing to the common misconception about small-area homes, clarified that being small in area must be accompanied by better design and more services. If the private floor area of a home is reduced, some of the residents’ needs can be compensated for through shared spaces and services; multi-purpose spaces, sports facilities, co-working spaces, and cleaning services can be part of a new generation of residential projects.

Bidar emphasised that the discussion is not simply about ‘building smaller’; it is about redesigning the concept of dwelling. Market experience has shown that a portion of future housing demand will move towards smaller-area units, but with appropriate services and quality.

The time has come to review housing and urban development policies

He stated that the private sector alone is incapable of responding to this transformation. If urban development regulations, the financing system, land policy, parking requirements, density, minimum unit area, and operational bylaws are not aligned with social changes, even developers who have recognised the new market demand will face constraints.

Bidar added that the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, municipalities, the Supreme Council of Urban Planning and Architecture, the banking system, and other relevant bodies must seriously incorporate the issue of changing household structures and lifestyles into housing policy. This review must go beyond a single plan or temporary facility and include a re-examination of a set of policies, from urban planning regulations and minimum floor areas to financing methods and professional rental models.

He concluded by emphasising that society does not wait for laws and urban plans, and the policymaker’s duty is to recognise the reality of society and design solutions for it. If we see this change today and plan for it, we can move away from a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach; otherwise, in a few years, we will face a city with many buildings, but many of them not designed to meet the real needs of the people.