Residential Mobility and Neighbourhood Outcomes

When households move they obviously weigh both the quality of the house and the quality of the neighbourhood in their decision process. But, to the extent that housing quality and neighbourhood quality are inter-twined it is difficult to disentangle the extent to which households are more focused on one or another of these two components of the choice process. This paper uses both cross-tabulations of the neighbourhood choices, and logit models of the actual choices, to examine the relative roles of neighbourhoods and houses in the choice process. The research is focused on the question of the extent to which households trade up in house quality, or neighbourhood quality or both, as outcomes of residential mobility. The research measures neighbourhood quality in both socio-economic and environmental dimensions. The study shows that many households not only move up in housing quality, but quite consistently also make gains in neighbourhood quality, often independently of gains in housing quality. Not surprisingly, the largest gains in neighbourhood quality are related to households who make the city/suburban transition in their housing moves. The research adds another dimension to the growing and extensive literature on neighbourhoods and their role in residential choice.     

Citizen support for spending to reduce homelessness in Canada’s largest urban centres

Abstract

We present the results of a randomized controlled survey experiment involving 1508 Canadians using hypothetical vignettes of homelessness experiences, allowing us to examine the extent to which Canadians who live in large urban centres hold different attitudes towards homeless populations and may differ systematically in terms of supporting expanding homelessness investments. The findings point to differences not only among major urban centres, but also along urban-suburban-rural dimensions, which help us understand the place-based drivers of political will and policy responses across the Canadian urban and regional context.     

Social networks of rural–urban migrants after residential relocation: evidence from Yangzhou,a medium-sized Chinese city

This paper analyses the effects of residential relocation on China’s rural–urban migrants’ social networks in light of evidence from Yangzhou, Jiangsu province. Our study contrasts voluntary moves with forced moves driven by demolition-led redevelopment of urban villages. Based on data from a survey conducted between 2012 and 2013, the regression analysis shows that voluntarily relocated migrants are more likely than forced movers to use phone/computer to contact their former neighbours, and communication technology allows them to maintain the frequency of their contact. Furthermore, when moving to a gated neighbourhood, voluntary movers are more likely than forced movers to participate in public activities, to have more contact with new neighbours and thereby to get more help from the residents’ committee and new neighbours. The results suggest that forced moves have negative effects on migrants’ social networks in the neighbourhood and that the demolition-led redevelopment programmes do not promote the migrants’ integration in the city.     

Diversifying Experiences of Community and the Implications for Addressing Place-based Poverty

The language of community is increasingly ambiguous yet the possibilities of cooperation in neighbourhood communities are central in many contemporary poverty reduction strategies targeting place-based disadvantage. Promoting neighbourhood community to redress socioeconomic disadvantage is emphasised at the same time that socioeconomic inequalities are acquiring marked spatial dimensions. In Australia, the implications of this for experiences of neighbourhood community have received limited attention. We present comparative analyses of perceptions of community in low-income and mixed neighbourhoods, and draw on related empirical and theoretical work to explore diversifying experiences of geographic community, and consider the implications for poverty reduction strategies targeting low-income neighbourhoods.     

Housing,Home and Neighbourhood Renewal in the Era of Superdiversity: Some Lessons from the West Midlands

Following two decades of new migration, the EU is now home to the most diverse population ever. Much new migration has occurred into superdiverse escalator areas already experiencing high levels of deprivation. In the UK, housing market renewal areas (HMRA) had a particular challenge to address housing market failure and the high population turnover often associated with new migration while meeting the needs of established residents. Lack of knowledge about the diverse housing needs of residents risked hampering renewal efforts. This paper uses qualitative data collected from a superdiverse sample of settled and new residents located in the Urban Living HMRA in the West Midlands to examine the ways in which they conceptualise home. The paper argues that understanding the ways in which diverse residents conceptualise home and home making, offers potential for policymakers to understand how residents' needs can be met.     

Re-shaping the geography of opportunity: place effects in global perspective

Studies of the effects of micro-level contexts on human development and socio-economic ‘opportunity’ run the risk of excluding important factors, including the dynamism of those contexts and the effects of globalisation on local places. Comparative analyses are particularly demanding, since varied elements of an ‘opportunity structure’ may operate, some directly and others indirectly, to affect behaviour and outcomes of interest. This paper connects concerns about local place effects on human life to the larger global conversation about increased social inequality and sharper economic competition among localities, in effect, addressing sorting at macro, inter-local, and intra-local levels. The European studies presented in this volume are discussed, and a typology of interventions (actions to re-shape local place effects) is proposed for further debate.     

Why do residents want to leave deprived neighbourhoods? The importance of residents’ subjective evaluations of their neighbourhood and its reputation

Many area-based initiatives in deprived urban neighbourhoods seek to reduce the number of residents who move away from the area. One common objective is to keep those with jobs or middle incomes in order to avoid further concentration of poor people and social problems. This paper is based on a study of how residents in 12 deprived urban areas in Denmark evaluate their neighbourhood and how this is connected to their wish to move or stay. The purpose is to expose the importance of residents’ subjective evaluations of the neighbourhood and its reputation for their inclination to stay or move away. Some conclusions are drawn for area-based initiatives that could reduce mobility. The study shows a strong connection between residents’ perception of the reputation of their neighbourhood and their plans to move, but it also shows that other factors have great importance too. Dissatisfaction due to social problems and crime are the main reasons for moving away from deprived neighbourhoods, especially among residents in employment. Strong social relations within the neighbourhood prove to significantly reduce the intention to move.     

Tenure type landscapes and housing market change: a geographical perspective on neo-liberalization in Sweden

Abstract

Discussions of tenure mix have received renewed interest as many have suggested that neo-liberalization has made way for gentrification of neighbourhoods and increasing segregation. Yet, few scholars have studied country-wide changes in tenure mix, due to the lack of data and appropriate methods. In this article, we propose to use tenure type landscapes to analyse changes in housing policy. We do so while acknowledging the evolution of housing policies in Sweden since 1990. Using individualized and multi-scalar tenure type landscapes to measure change in neighbourhoods, we analyse housing clusters in 1990 and 2012. We show that the tenure landscape in 1990 at the height of the welfare state was fairly diverse and mixed. During the next 22 years, however, the landscape changed to become more homogenized and dominated by ownership through tenure conversions and new housing. We argue that awareness of these changes is essential to understanding present and future segregation and gentrification processes.     

A question of social sustainability: Urban interventions in critical neighbourhoods in Portugal and Norway

Urban interventions in deprived neighbourhoods rank high on the agenda in European countries. This article explores what aspects of targeted urban-area interventions involve and appreciate local people during the intervention process so that they become motivated to continue to take care of and develop their area afterwards. Local social sustainability stands out as a necessary prerequisite for continued upkeep of upgraded urban neighbourhoods. The analysis builds on a ‘most different approach’, a comparison of interventions in the far south (Lisbon) and north (Oslo) of Europe. The article concludes that in addition to relevant goals and progress, local support was conditioned on how goals, organization and participation were worked out and implemented.     

Trial and error in urban restructuring processes: learning from Dutch experiences

In the last few decades, new governance processes have been put in place throughout the Western world. In practice, unfortunately, cooperation in the networks does not always work as expected. In this paper, we identify the factors that contribute to success and failure with respect to network working in urban restructuring and the lessons that can be learnt. A Dutch case study exemplifies these processes. The perceptions of local stakeholders about satisfying or dissatisfying processes and results were used to elicit the information. Our main conclusion is that changed institutional conditions affecting the local authorities and housing associations and economic developments strongly intervene in the processes. Consequently, the functioning of a network cannot be explained by the quality of network management alone. These findings indicate that there is a gap between the suggested importance of the instruments in network theory and their relative usefulness in everyday practice. Dealing with all kinds of constraints in the management of networks will be an ongoing process of trial and error.