This paper examines the housing and neighbourhood quality of public housing in Lagos, Nigeria. It describes the nature and characteristics of the housing; and reports findings from a survey research on public housing in the study area. A survey of eight purposively selected public housing estates (five low-income and three mediumincome estates) was conducted to evaluate the housing quality and neighbourhood infrastructure and identify areas of vulnerability to future public health hazards. The paper identifies and discusses the quality indicators and causes of inadequacy in the selected housing estates. The assessment of the conditions and quality of housing and neighbourhood environment in each of estates was conducted by means of penalty scoring. Blocks of houses in low-income estates reported significantly lower levels of housing and environmental quality than houses in the medium-income estates. Based on housing condition alone, approximately 34 per cent of all the housing blocks surveyed (n=225) in the eight estates were categorised as being of poor quality and dilapidated, that is, with two or more major defects. Based on the neighbourhood environment, about 65 per cent and 30 per cent in the low-income and mediumincome estates respectively fall into the poor quality category. The study identifies and discusses the perceived reasons for these findings and makes useful recommendations that could enhance housing quality and improve quality-of-life in public housing. It concludes on the need for participatory approaches to infrastructure improvements and enhanced collaboration between stakeholders to maintain present housing and neighbourhood stock and develop sustainable future builds. Copyright © 2012 IAHS.
