Poor construction with temporary material exposes families to all kinds of health and
safety risks, especially from ticks and insects concealed in unfinished mud walls and
earthen floors, vermin and snakes in thatch, parasite seeking human host and malarial
mosquitoes entering through unscreened windows and doorway. This study was
conducted to identify factors influencing the ownership of modern houses among
households in Iringa District. Specifically, the study examined the major factors and
materials used in constructing modern houses, identified the time in which the households
used to accomplish the construction of modern houses. The study involved 70
respondents and 10 key informants from government institutions in Iringa District.
Purposeful sampling was used to identify households owning modern houses. Data were
collected using a structured questionnaire, interview schedules and personal observations.
In addition, secondary data from several sources were collected. Descriptive statistics
such as frequencies, percentage and mean were determined. Qualitative data from
personal observations and key informant interviews were summarized and reported. Also
linear simple regression model was used to analyse data, particularly in determining
major factors influencing rural household’s ownership of a modern house. Findings from
the study show that majority of modern houses were constructed using burnt bricks (68.5
%) and un-burnt brick (21.4 %). It was noted that factors like income, education, types of
occupation, family size, cultural believes, land ownership, and prices of materials had a
significant influence on the ownership of modern houses. It was also found that materials
used in the construction of houses were locally available in the study area. On the basis
of the study findings, it is recommended that the task of constructing modern houses in
rural and urban areas should be carried in such a way government provides loan with low
interest and trains more masons by using VETA in order to smoothen the construction of
modern house.