Smarter Solutions for Affordable Living Amidst Massive Increase in Global Population

Affordable housing is a dream for billions of people around the world. According to the latest estimates and published in a Time magazine report, by 2030, more than 3 billion people will need affordable housing. That will be roughly 40% of the world’s population at that time. This is a staggering stat that speaks volumes about how important affordable housing is for us.

There are certain elements related to housing that are universal. Like the problem mentioned above, there are many other issues that can be termed as critical for people, especially those belonging to the middle and lower classes. Big cities across the world, just like Toronto, Canada, will have to make way for over 950 million people in the coming decade. This can be a big problem for them as the infrastructure in the poor, third world countries may be too much to handle.

Affordable Living, a Distant Dream in Big Metropolitan Cities?

If you haven’t calculated the cost of making even a small home, let me shed some light on this aspect. It can cost a small family with five members, up to 30,000 dollars, to build a home for themselves from scratch. This may be too much for a person belonging to the lower class or anyone who doesn’t have the resources to build a house for that much amount. That’s why people choose a place to live where they don’t have to go through all this planning and can move in as soon as they want.

Flats, apartments, and condos fit the bill for these people as they are affordable and fit the idea of living in a big city. With shrinking real estate, there are enough reasons for an increase in current and upcoming residential projects’ prices for sure. So this will make room for people related to the housing industry and the government to think about what can be done to make this affordable to the common man.

A New Trend that Can Go the Distance

A not very recent but exciting development in this concern is related to 3-D printing of houses, as it is gaining momentum. Although the idea is still in its infancy, this can be a game-changer as far as affordable housing is concerned. In Mexico, innovative startups have already demonstrated to 3-D print a house built in 24 hours and for less than 4000 dollars. Just think about what can be done with this technology in the future as it has the potential to build thousands of budget homes in a matter of a few months.

Some people may think that this technology is in its infancy and may take years to commercialize. But in dense urban areas like Toronto, New York City, and Los Angeles, this can be a boon for the housing sector. Real estate developers are always on the lookout for solutions that can make their job easy, and they can start and complete new projects in record time. This may just be the solution that can offer an affordable and customized place to live, like a condo to the middle and lower class.

Rapid urbanization is looking scary as the world population is inching towards the eight billion marks. This milestone may be reached within three years at the earliest. Scientists and environmentalists are trying their hard to avert this as this spell disaster for the people living on this planet and the depleting resources. 3-D printing can help people at least get a place to live that may not be a lavish one like a luxury ■■■■■■■■■ in the Mink Mile or near the Toronto Waterfront. But at least it will give them shelter to live and save them from harsh weather.

Over to you

Affordable, clean, and safe housing must be offered to every country in the world to its citizens. But the insane rate of increase in the population is making it ■■■■■■ to achieve this. But solutions like 3-D printing may solve the woes of people worldwide.

Do you have some other solutions in this concern that can make this mammoth task somewhat easier? Or want some clarification for any aspect mentioned in this blog? For any feedback too, please use the comments section below.