Is the "kaláka" really eternal?

Self-building and the role of households in the creation of housing in allotment gardens

Abstract

Household resources have traditionally played an important role in meeting the housing needs of households in Hungary. My study examines the role of household resources in housing through the recent form of self-help housing through the habitation of former peri-urban allotment gardens. My study considers the practice of self-help housing in peri-urban allotment gardens as a response of households to the housing crisis, which contributes to the creation of secure housing for households while reproducing inequalities. My paper explores how self-help housing affects the division of labour within and between households and how households use their own and community resources in order to create their own housing.