Unpacking the dynamics of intra-urban residential mobility in Nigerian cities: Analysis of low-income families in Ojo Lagos

Abstract

While studies have revealed some factors that generally influence residential mobility patterns within the urban setting, the effects of the interplay of these factors on residential movements of low income families are less understood. This study therefore examined the dynamics of residential mobility in Ojo area of Lagos megacity Nigeria. Data were obtained from a survey of households in eleven electoral wards of Ojo Lagos using systematic random sampling methods. Results showed that majority of the residents had moved several times over their life course. The observed residential mobility rates in the study area were explained by six latent variates that cumulatively accounted for 72.9% of the total variance. Regression analyses showed that a number of family lifecycle and household contextual factors were significant predictors of residential mobility in Ojo area of Lagos. However, in contrast to existing studies gender, employment status and neighborhood condition had insignificant influence on residential mobility in the low-income neighborhoods of Lagos. This study provides useful insights for understanding residential mobility dynamics in urban low-income neighborhoods, and it also provides important policy and theoretical implications for improving the polarized housing markets in the Global South cities.