Under-occupied dwelling / Undercrowded dwelling

Définition

A dwelling is under-occupied if it has more rooms than the number of rooms theoretically required by the household living in it (standard).
Under-occupation can be moderate (one room more than the standard), severe (two rooms more) or very severe (at least three rooms more).
The number of rooms theoretically required (standard) is computed as follows:
one living room for the household;
one room for each couple;
one room for each person aged 19 and older not living as a couple in the household;
for people under 19 years old, one room for two people if they are of the same sex or under 7 years old, otherwise, one room per person.
The kitchen is included in the number of rooms of a dweeling only if it measures more than 12 m².

Remarque

The concept of under-occupied dwelling is used only for dwellings that are primary residences;
Under-occupation and undercrowding are used interchangeably. Using the additionnal criterion of surface area per person only modifies the boundary between a normal situation and a situation of overcrowding/overoccupation;
Eurostat uses different age criteria to determine the standard.