An estimation approach for dividable multiattribute utility of housing via questionnaires of consumers’ ordinal multicriteria preferences

Compared with ordinary commercial products, housing has many special characteristics including the multi-function characteristic. How to evaluate the multi-functional nature of housing is very useful in both theory and in application, yet it is often ignored in China. This paper introduces an approach to estimate the multicriteria function of housing using multiattribute utility theory (MAUT) based on consumers’ ordinal multicriteria preferences as determined via questionnaires. When compared with the classic framework in which MAUT is applied, this approach needs less prior information and subjective comparisons and thus can allay many of the operational difficulties involved in assessment. Some potential applications to the China housing market are also discussed.