Health issues and the building stock

The impact of housing on many aspects of inhabitants' health has been recognized and enshrined in legislation since the late 19th century in many countries. The improved housing quality in many European countries between 1900 and 1940 contributed immensely to reducing the burden of disease. However, no dwelling is without health hazards. In the past, health hazards tended to be diagnosed for individual houses. An alternative approach is provided that studies the total housing stock to categorize and identify those parts of the stock at highest risk. This can be used to inform policy and strategy on prevention and remediation of specific health hazards. The key research question is: how can housing stock be categorized on the basis of health hazards? A method for the categorization of the housing stock is presented. The history of housing standards and construction methods in the Netherlands along with expert health knowledge based on individual dwellings is used to identify categories with specific hazards. Building type, construction, tenure and age band are important parameters for categorization. A top-down argument is presented, leading to the identification of key issues for public health policies for the housing stock as a whole.