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The challenges in meeting housing demand in African cities have manifested in increased attention to encouraging and adopting incremental housing approach to address the persistent housing deficits with recourse to development control measures. Relatedly, there have been calls to recognize and understand how attitudes of incremental builders or homeowners conform to development control measures from an African perspective. Using Kumasi as a case study, this paper inquires: in what ways can the attitudes of homeowners be used to address housing challenges via incrementalism and how can perceptions inform development control toward sustainability of cities? The findings show that despite the existence of various development control measures to promote orderly human settlement development, incremental housing development does not conform to such regulations due to low knowledge of builders on existing measures, avoidance of incurring additional costs, unnecessary formality and bureaucratic nature of permit acquisition process, and failure of city authorities to strictly enforce regulations. The study concludes that perception and awareness on development control regulations influence attitudes toward compliance. Hence, the need to sensitize and integrate attitudes and knowledge of homeowners into urban planning efforts to safeguard the urban landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Residential developments in African cities such as Kumasi, should proceed based on approved subdivisions. However, it is now common for land owners and residents to tweak approved layouts by creating additional unapproved plots to sell to the urban poor without the knowledge of planning authorities. There is dearth of research about the experiences, attitudes and perceptions of half plot developers and urban planning responses as well as the implications of this phenomenon. Using in-depth interviews of city officials and homeowners in the south-eastern part of Kumasi, the research sought to address this gap. The findings suggested that the urban poor opt to acquire half plots for housing development mainly because of the informal nature of the rental housing market and high rent charges. The challenges associated with the increasing phenomenon of acquiring and developing on half plots were revealed to be high densities, inability to secure mortgages, conflicts with neighbours and the fear of eviction due to lack of security of tenure as well as lack of legal documentation. Urban planning responses to this phenomenon appear weak and inefficient. The study concludes that the urban poor, considering the benefits of acquiring and developing on half plots might continue with the practice; hence, the need to find pragmatic ways of dealing with the rapid occurrence of the half plot phenomenon. • Calls for incremental housing have intensified over the years to address housing challenges in cities. • Incremental housing development does not conform to standards. • Perception and awareness on development control influence attitudes toward compliance. • Non-compliance results in unguarded developments which threaten city sustainability. • Integrating perception into urban planning efforts is crucial to safeguard the urban landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to housing data in Ghana has been a challenge for researchers due to the lack of comprehensive data sources. However, the recent availability of big data sources has presented opportunities to bridge this data access gap. Using Greater Accra as a case, this study uses web scraping techniques to acquire publicly available housing data from two major E-commerce websites in Ghana and explores the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area's (GAMA) prevailing housing market. Spatial autocorrelation statistics show clustering of high median prices in known high-class neighborhoods. Median prices in high-class neighborhoods were three to five times higher than median prices in the entire metropolis, highlighting high housing costs in high-class neighborhoods. This research highlights the high housing cost in GAMA, making it impossible for the average resident to afford to buy a house. Hence, a more inclusive housing strategy is needed to provide affordable housing options for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]