Impacts of In‐Migration and Coastal Amenities on Housing Growth in Coastal North Carolina, United States

Abstract

ABSTRACTMigrant preferences for environmental amenities contribute to demand for new housing and associated land use/cover change. Coastal North Carolina has emerged as an important migration destination that is being ‘discovered’ by in‐migrants who may attracted in part by coastal amenities. Investigations of linkages between population and land change are part of a population–environment research paradigm requiring integration of social, natural, environmental, and geographical information science. We contribute to the population–environment literature by addressing two main questions: (1) what factors drive housing growth in an amenity rich coastal region in North Carolina? and (2) how does housing behaviour differ between categories of migrant and non‐migrant households? Regression results revealed in‐migration, prior housing density, and tourism presence to have the largest effects on new housing growth. Ocean proximity failed to act as an environmental amenity attracting growth; however, we found evidence suggesting that the interior estuarine region may act as an outlet for development pressure. Later‐life migration was revealed to be particularly important with later life in‐migrants being more likely to (a) reside in new homes; (b) reside in single family detached homes; (c) be home owners; (d) own homes with greater property values; and (e) have greater household incomes. Themes of our findings for a relatively small region share commonalities with processes occurring in larger scale amenity–migrant regions such as the US Mountain West yet suggest the possibility of other localised growth regions that collectively might contribute significantly to processes of population and land use change. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.