Improvements in Housing and the Challenges in Practice

The objective of this collaborative chat is to provide a moment to discuss housing improvement programs currently operating in Brazil, highlighting their limits and potentials, the level of operation attained and the relationship between the architects and the community they serve. Housing improvements are understood as any intervention executed in existing houses aimed at the low-income population with the objective of improving the habitability of the built space, such as renovations to bathrooms and kitchens, repairs to roofs, improvements in ventilation quality and natural lighting, plumbing facilities, in addition to the distribution of resources to the resident for the cost of materials and/or labor. For this purpose, the architects present their experiences in practice with the programs "Vida Nova nas Grotas" in Alagoas and "Cheque Minha Casa" in Maranhão, in addition to a comparative study of public programs, NGOs and social business in São Paulo, the Federal District and Rio de Janeiro.