住宅 and 家屋: housing needs and individual dwellings
Compare 住宅 in examples about new housing and a shortage with 家屋 for a house converted into an inn and homes recreated in a model. The number of homes does not define the difference.
Housing and demand with 住宅
住宅 (じゅうたく) means housing or a residence. 「駅の東側に新しい住宅が建ち始めた。」 means “New housing has begun to appear east of the station.” 建ち始めた describes housing beginning to appear.
「若い世代向けの住宅が不足している。」 means “There is a shortage of housing for younger generations.” The focus is a shortage of housing for younger generations.
Dwellings named 家屋
家屋 (かおく) means a house or dwelling. 「古い家屋を改修して小さな宿にした。」 means “We renovated an old house into a small inn.” An existing house has been renovated for use as a small inn.
「模型には川沿いに並ぶ家屋が細かく再現されている。」 means “The model carefully recreates the homes lining the river.” These homes are recreated within a model; the sentence does not describe building new homes by the river.
Follow the focus rather than a fixed number
住宅 and 家屋 can refer to overlapping residential objects. Here, 住宅 appears in discussion of housing emerging and being in short supply, while 家屋 names a renovated house and the homes shown in a model.
住宅 does not necessarily mean several homes, nor does 家屋 necessarily mean just one. Read both the dwelling being named and what the sentence says about it.
Must 住宅 mean several homes and 家屋 mean a single home?
Show the answer and why
No. Both can name dwellings. In these examples, 住宅 focuses on housing needs and supply, while 家屋 names a house converted into an inn and homes recreated in a model.