Housing is not merely a material need, but rather the foundation for family formation and a catalyst for human social development. Article 31 of the Iranian Constitution recognizes housing as a universal right for all citizens and mandates the government to ensure its provision. However, a review of the government’s performance in fulfilling this statutory duty to facilitate homeownership indicates a systemic failure. In 2025, the homeownership rate was approximately 64% nationwide and 51% in Tehran. The share of housing expenses in the household basket currently stands at 59.9% for Tehran, with a national average of 43.7%. Furthermore, more than half of urban and rural residents face a high risk of earthquake-induced mortality due to the structural instability of their homes and the stagnation of renovation efforts. The housing demand rate, which exceeded 42% for a population of 25 million in 1979, remains at a similar proportional level in 2025 for a population of 90 million. Despite two comprehensive housing plans and dozens of national and urban development programs addressing this issue, the current crisis persists as the outcome of these efforts. Given its critical role in the development process and the successive policy failures, the housing issue in Iran necessitates a critical re-evaluation through the deconstruction of both the problem statement and the approaches taken to address it.

Development programs and comprehensive housing plans have committed significant scientific errors in defining the housing problem and its contributing factors. Consequently, proposed solutions have consistently been reduced to mere land management or construction financing. The evasion of explicitly stating objectives, the application of unscientific and one-dimensional methodologies in problem identification, and the reliance on a static group of planning experts constitute three core characteristics of the country’s unsuccessful housing management programs. To reform the programmatic approach in future policymaking, twelve neglected themes in Iran’s housing planning system must be addressed as follows: 1. Spatial planning programs; 2. Urban development programs (comprehensive plans); 3. Residential unit typologies; 4. Residential complex typologies; 5. Urban housing systems; 6. Industrialized building construction; 7. Government revenue and housing prices; 8. Industrial production of building materials; 9. Fragmentation of statistics and databases; 10. Alignment with upstream and related macroeconomic programs; 11. Vacant homes, second homes, and investment properties; and 12. The potential of distressed urban fabrics.