What is Good Design?

	Introduction
	Meets the user's needs
	Understands and Responds to Its Context
	Enhances its Neighborhood
	Built to Last

Carefully designed plants and landscaping help soften the impact of the large building surrounding this courtyard. Enclosed balconies and terraces provide every unit in this Oakland, California project with private open space. This patio can easily handle a table and chairs, plus plants. See Gallery or Design Considerations Checklist for more Examples.

	Introduction
	Meets the user's needs
	Understands and Responds to Its Context
	Enhances its Neighborhood
	Built to Last

Design means many things to many people and "good design" is often different from one "eye of the beholder" to the next. Nonetheless, for the purposes of the Design Advisor we can say that a project is well designed if it meets the following four basic criteria: Meets User Needs, Understands and Responds to its Context, Enhances its Neighborhood and is Built to Last. These four basic criteria form the backbone of the Affordable Housing Design Advisor and underpin all of its sections. Each criteria is described in more detail in subsequent pages within this section of the website.