From single-family to multi-family plots: land fractality, the geography of trust, and the democratization of homeownership.
Further reading
Land division is an art — of dividing existing plots to build new homes in our backyards.
A simple gesture, yet profoundly political.
A technical act, but also a cultural one.
And perhaps the most powerful tool we have for intergenerational equity.
Villes Vivantes
Modeling an incremental gentle densification process through progressive plot splits and addition of new constructions (projects co-designed with the resident owners)
1. The 21st century begins with today’s birthrate
I have a two-and-a-half-year-old son. He was clearly not born into the same “world” as his teenage brother and sister.
Birthrate is deeply linked to the vitality of a society. Yes, declining fertility has material causes. But it also reflects a broader choice — individual and collective — not to place our trust in the future.
Falling birthrates mean one thing: younger generations are losing faith in what lies ahead. And this distrust is something we are actively organizing.
2. No-net-land-take law creates a massive generational inequality
Yes, by banning the artificialization of new land, we are finally protecting nature and farmland. But we are also handing over all the power of land access to older generations. We are creating land scarcity — and transforming it into wealth inequality. For future generations, starting a life will mean buying, at a premium, a piece of land already owned by someone else. Someone who came before.
3. But older generations are afraid, too
And their fear gets written into planning law — into local zoning rules.
Fear of change.
Fear of new neighbors.
Fear of losing sunlight or a little peace and quiet.
So we restrict the right to build — even within already urbanized areas.
4. A new equation for trust
In this uncertain world, becoming a homeowner in a thriving metropolitan area is a foundation stone for future trust.
Metropolization and coastalization aren’t passing trends.
We seek nature to connect.
We seek jobs to make a good living.
And we seek the freedom to change jobs, to find another one if needed.
This is the geography of trust in the early 21st century. At a time when trust in public and private institutions is collapsing, only two anchors remain:
The territory we live in, and the home we create.
5. Dividing plots to build a new geography of trust
Land can be multiplied — Through division.
Well-located plots are abundant, if we choose to share them.
70% of French people would accept a plot of 200 square meters or less.
This is the space of right measure. It’s the space of hope — for the young generations, for those who want to settle, build, start a family.
France has 20 million single-family homes. With land divisions, we could create 40 million new houses with gardens — without artificializing a single extra hectare.
Forty million.
That’s more than the 38 million dwellings that currently exist in France.
Enough to house, to welcome, to share, to secure, to love — abundantly.