The new image of home: marketing narratives of residential large urban developments

Abstract Residential high-rise buildings for the middle–upper middle-class population are increasingly prevalent in many parts of the world as part of the general vertical expansion of cities. This paper examines the new image of home that is associated with this housing typology, as evidenced by the marketing campaigns of new residential large urban developments in Israel. A qualitative and quantitative analysis of 50 marketing campaigns identified five themes that together portray the new image of home—proximity, facility, quality, hype, and promise. Based on visions produced by the marketing campaigns, the new image of home replaces uniqueness and personal identity with lifestyle and urban practices. Moreover, the new image blurs the lines between home and vacation, usually perceived as being away from home, and generates new visions of what home is for and with them, new expectations from housing environments.