Collective action success factors and community satisfaction in Malaysia’s urban commons

This study examines maintenance and management in socio-economically grounded multi-owned low-cost housing schemes in Malaysia, employing an augmented institutional analysis framework. Focusing on collective action success factors, the research addresses two main questions: ‘How does the influence of the six collective action success factors impact community satisfaction?’ and ‘To what extent does the income of parcel holders contribute to the success factors affecting community satisfaction within collective action?’ Combining quantitative and qualitative methods, this study encompasses a survey of 633 parcel holders in Greater Kuala Lumpur and subsequent interviews with local leadership. Successful self-management of common properties was influenced by the physical environment, social capital, rules-in-use, stakeholders’ interest, adaptation, and racial relationships. Additionally, income acted as a moderator between community satisfaction level and physical environment attributes, as well as stakeholders’ interests. This research recommends government subsidies for multi-owned low-cost housing maintenance, contributing policy insights to the global housing discourse.