Choice within limits: how the institutional context of forced relocation affects tenants’ housing searches and choice strategies

Abstract

Whether renewal-induced relocations have a positive or a negative impact on displaced tenants is hotly debated on both sides of the Atlantic. In response, scientists have examined the outcomes of forced relocations and shown that they can be both negative and positive. However, the choice processes and strategies underlying these mixed outcomes have received much less attention in academia. We therefore examined how the institutional context of forced relocation affects displaced tenants’ choice processes and strategies. The results of a qualitative analysis of interviews with 144 displaced tenants from five Dutch cities show that they can be considered active agents because they adopt different choice strategies. Nevertheless, the choice strategies and experienced freedom of choice differed between tenants who were confronted with different relocation regulations. The limits imposed by and the opportunities of institutional contexts steer the choice processes and strategies of displaced tenants, but are by no means deterministic.