Housing transformation within urbanized communities: The arab palestinians in israel

This paper discusses the residential transformation process within the Arab Palestinian community in Israel as a result of urbanization. It highlights the variety of housing models applicable to sub-groups of the Arab population according to geographical distribution, ethno-religious affiliation, and type of locality where different urbanization trends and social and physical rural environments are key characteristics. The most common residential model for this population group is the self-built house. The self-built house is common for upper-middle class Israeli Jews, while it remains the model of choice of lower-middle class Arab Israelis. This paper also considers the critical changes and processes of housing supply and demand as a result of the urbanization process, examining the planning, social and political factors, as well as the obstacles that have a direct impact on the Arab housing market.