Residential Relocation Research Articles

Homeownership, Relocation, and Lifetime Budget Risk

We present new estimates of the causal effect of homeownership on residential relocation. In theory, risk in individuals' lifetime budgets discourages homeownership, but the risk of future income shocks should not directly affect current relocation decisions. We thus use estimates of workers' lifetime-budget risk, conditional on their current income risk, to obtain independent variation in homeownership that does not directly predict relocation. Estimates from bivariate probits corroborate this strategy and imply that homeownership reduces workers' probability of moving within the next two years by about 30 percentage points.

A comparison between residential relocation timing of Sydney and Chicago residents: A Bayesian survival analysis

Understanding households' behaviour in residential relocation timing is of great importance in the field of transport engineering and economics. This research aims to develop a residential relocation model by considering the potential dynamic impacts of other households' decisions and variables, including economic and demographic attributes, housing features, intra-household decision-making structures, travel mode choice, and other life-course attributes. A multivariate parametric survival model with both fixed and time-varying covariates is developed. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first paper in the literature of residential relocation timing to propose the use of a Bayesian model in contrast to the widely used classic frequentist approach and have conducted a discussion on its advantages. An emerging residential relocation dataset collected for two cities in Australia and the USA (Sydney and Chicago cities) has been used, which covers residence, vehicle ownership, occupation, education, economic and demographic attributes of respondents. A comprehensive comparison between the results of two cities and a comparison between two Bayesian and frequentist approaches are made. This study confirms the impact of life-course variables, intra-household decision-making behaviours, and sociodemographic attributes on home mobility. According to the model outputs, the accelerating or decelerating impact of explanatory variables on the relocation timing has been almost the same in the two cities. The Bayesian model was confirmed to have some advantages over the frequentist model, including being straightforward to interpret, availability of making inferences on the results, and ease of handling complex models, and optimisation convergence complexities.

Modeling household relocation choice: An egalitarian bargaining approach and a comparative study

Accompanying the rapid urban expansion and fast population growth is a progressive trend of residential relocation in developing countries, which necessitates a thorough understanding of households’ relocation decisions. Previous studies generally treated home relocation as an individual or unitary household decision, ignoring the interactive and collaborative decision-making mechanisms that household members may adopt when making group decisions. In view of this research gap, this study examines the feasibility of applying the egalitarian bargaining approach to simulating households’ group decisions concerning residential relocation and further compares its performance with the Nash bargaining and the conventional utilitarian approach. Moreover, the study experiments with the possibility of accommodating three possible group decision-making mechanisms using the latent class modeling framework. The proposed modeling approaches are applied to an empirical case study in Beijing. Results show that models based on the egalitarian and Nash bargaining principles have better model fits than the utilitarian principle, suggesting the importance of considering egalitarianism when modeling household members’ collaborative choice on residential relocation. Moreover, the model based on Nash bargaining has the best model fit, indicating that instead of merely seeking egalitarianism or utilitarianism, household members are more likely to strike a balance between fairness and efficiency.

Understanding Residential Relocation Choices in Coastal Cities in the Face of Climate Change

Climate change poses risks of inundation to low-lying coastal cities and may cause residential relocation and change in housing demand. Taking the City of Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia as a case study, this paper reports on a survey that investigates the potential responses of residents living in the coastal city to flood risks and how the responses may relate to their socio-economic status. Through a combined online and mail-based survey, our data show that people’s perceptions of flooding have an important impact on their relocation choices. Their perceptions and relocation choices are associated with their socio-economic background. Furthermore, residents’ preferences of dwelling types appear to be affected by the level of flood risks we hypothesise in the survey. The findings from this study provide empirical evidence for future residential zoning and urban development.

Geographical scale of residential relocation and its impacts on vehicle ownership and travel behavior

This paper investigates the geographical scale of residential mobility and its impacts on household vehicle ownership and commute mode choice decisions in Hubli-Dharwad twin cities. We have identified three geographic scales of residential mobility – within wards, between wards, and between cities. The descriptive and statistical analyses reveal that households that moved between cities and those moved between wards added more cars post-relocation. Further, households that moved within wards exhibited a higher likelihood of adding the first motorized two-wheeler and increasing their two-wheeler fleet to two. Notably, families that moved within or between wards are observed to increase their two-wheeler fleet from holding two vehicles at their previous home location. Households that moved between cities switched to public transit from private mode use at the previous residential location. The residential mobility model suggests that household heads holding a postgraduate degree and above are more likely to relocate between the cities and less likely to relocate between wards. Households that moved between wards are more likely to switch to motorized two-wheelers for work travel than the households that moved within cities, as implied by the mode choice model. Between-cities movements encourage vehicle relinquishment, as suggested by the statistical model. The study also shows that an increase in land use mix diversity of residential wards decreases households' tendency to procure additional vehicles and encourages personal vehicles' relinquishment.

Recent Relocation Patterns Among Older Adults in the United States

Problem, research strategy, and findings Residential relocation is a way for older adults to cope with income changes, health changes, and other life cycle events such as the loss of a partner. The number of movers aged 60 and older increased by 1.4 million from 2010 to 2019 in the United States. Therefore, it is timely to examine older adults’ recent relocation patterns. Using multiple national-level data sources, we asked two questions: First, who are movers among older adults, and why are they moving? Second, what are their destination regions and neighborhoods? Results show that movers tend to be renters, those with lower incomes, those with higher housing cost burdens, and those who live alone. Although older adults’ primary reason for relocation is to live closer to their families, baby boomers younger than 70 have more heterogeneous moving reasons than older cohorts. We classify older adult movers into three types: aging adapters (56.9% of movers), suburb lovers (37.5% of movers), and long-distance movers (5.6% of movers). Takeaway for practice Our findings suggest short- and long-term strategies for planners to help older adults meet their heterogeneous residential needs. Practitioners should take steps to increase housing affordability for older adults, such as through changes in land use controls, by creating more age-restricted and age-inclusive communities to accommodate the diverse needs of movers among older adults, and by promoting age-friendly ride-hailing and public transit systems.

Socio‐spatial strategies of school selection in a free parental choice context

AbstractThe geography of education literature has demonstrated remarkable similarities in school choice strategies across different educational and spatial contexts. The literature finds that school choice strategies of the middle classes rely on deploying different forms of capital (economic, social, and cultural). At the same time, it is evident that the specific geography and institutional idiosyncrasies of the educational landscape are navigated in locally specific ways that are not just classed but also strongly intersect with ethnicity/race. In most contexts moving house plays a central role in school choice. However, residential relocation as part of school choice strategies is highly contingent on national and local regulations of school allocation and enrolment. Investigating the case of the metropolitan area of Amsterdam, this paper uses longitudinal individual, geo‐coded register data to study the socio‐spatial school choice strategies of an entire cohort of first‐born children (2012) in a free‐school choice landscape. Employing an analysis of the interconnections of residential relocation and school choice, this paper uses multinomial logit models to assess how school is differentiated by social class and migration background and how it is related to residential (re)location. It finds that school choice strategies are differentiated by both class and ethnicity, but also very strongly depend on residential context. Remarkably, the paper finds that while a substantial number of highly educated, high‐income parents move and enrol their children in homogeneous middle‐class schools, a majority of households do not move and hence navigate the school landscape in which they find themselves. It suggests that school choice policies indeed reduce the need for residential relocation, but at the same time are conducive to school segregation.

A longitudinal residential relocation study of changes in street layout and physical activity

Few longitudinal residential relocation studies have explored associations between urban form and physical activity, and none has used the Space Syntax theory. Using a Canadian longitudinal dataset (n = 5944), we estimated: (1) differences in physical activity between non-movers, and those relocating to neighbourhoods with less or more integrated street layouts, and; (2) associations between changes in street layout integration exposure and differences in physical activity. Adjusting for covariates, we found relative to non-movers, those who moved to more integrated neighbourhoods undertook significantly (p < .05) more leisure walking (27.3 min/week), moderate-intensity (45.7 min/week), and moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (54.4 min/week). Among movers, a one-unit increase in the relative change in street integration exposure ([Street integration at follow-up—street integration at baseline]/street integration at baseline) was associated with a 7.5 min/week increase in leisure walking. Our findings suggest that urban design policies that improve neighbourhood street integration might encourage more physical activity in adults.

How a Lack of Green in the Residential Environment Lowers the Life Satisfaction of City Dwellers and Increases Their Willingness to Relocate

This paper investigates whether various forms of green spaces in the residential environment are associated with city dwellers’ life satisfaction and their willingness to relocate. Previous research on different forms of green spaces in the residential environment as a direct source of life satisfaction is scarce, and we know little about whether green spaces affect the decision to relocate. We address these topics with a two-equation model that estimates respondents’ considerations to relocate while accounting for life satisfaction. With this strategy, we are able to test which aspects of residential greenery (window view, green environment, green yard, own garden, and balcony) are associated with one or both outcomes, controlling for life-course events and demographic characteristics. The data come from a primary survey conducted in two large German cities, Cologne and Hamburg, in 2020/21 (N = 1886). The results show that not having green elements in the window view, not having a green yard, and—exclusively for parents—not having a garden increase the likelihood of considering residential relocation. Not having a balcony and not having a garden are directly associated with decreased life satisfaction, and decreased life satisfaction triggers the willingness to relocate.

Characteristics of repeat non-attenders at Diabetes Eye Screening Wales, a national community-based diabetes-related retinopathy screening service, during 2003-2018.

To understand factors associated with repeat non-attendance at screening for diabetes-related retinopathy. Retrospective observational study using anonymised data from Diabetic Eye Screening Wales for people with a full history of screening invitations and attendances was linked with primary and secondary care records held in the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage Databank. Repeat non-attendance was defined as no record of attendance during any 36-month period despite three cycles of annual screening invitations. The associations between repeat non-attendance and potential risk factors were examined using multivariable logistic regression analysis, stratified according to type 1 and type 2 diabetes. A total of 18% with type 1 diabetes (1146/6513) and 8% with type 2 diabetes (12,475/156,525) were repeat non-attenders. Participants attending their very first appointment were least likely to become repeat non-attenders [odds ratio (95% confidence interval)]: type 1 diabetes: 0.12 (0.09, 0.17) and type 2 diabetes: 0.08 (0.07, 0.09). For both types of diabetes, those of a younger age, living in areas of higher deprivation and subject to multiple house moves were at greater risk of becoming repeat non-attenders. A more tailored approach is needed for the younger population, those living in areas of higher deprivation and/or undergoing multiple residential relocation and to ensure attendance at their initial appointment to minimise future repeat non-attendance.

Residential relocation and travel behavior change: Investigating the effects of changes in the built environment, activity space dispersion, car and bike ownership, and travel attitudes

The influence of residential relocation, as a life event, on travel behavior has become the focus of research on determinants of travel behavior in recent years. Although several studies have investigated the influence of changes in the built environment of the residential environment, the complex relationships between the built environment, travel attitudes and travel behavior has remained controversial. One crucial research gap in this area is the paucity of longitudinal and semi-longitudinal research designs that could capture the influence of changes in the built environment, activity space dispersion, car and bike ownership, latent attitudes towards travel, as well as travel behavior, and the interrelationships between these factors. This study attempts to fill this gap by collecting retrospective travel behavior and attitudinal data in Helsinki Metropolitan Area using an online map-based survey tool. In total, 1321 residents who had relocated to a new residential location between three to eleven months prior to the survey date participated in the study. The study collected data related to common home-based trips during a typical week in September 2017 and September 2018, stated change in the use of different modes of transport after the move, as well as socio-demographic, and attitudinal data before and after the move. Based on residential location and the visited destinations during a typical week, respondents’ activity space dispersion was measured. Structural equation modelling was then used to investigate the interrelationships between changes in the built environment, activity space dispersion, car and bike ownership, travel attitudes, and travel behavior. Results indicate the existence of reciprocal influences between changes in car and bike ownership, travel attitudes, and travel behavior. It is also found that the built environment can modify and change travel related attitudes and influence activity space dispersion, which in turn affects travel behavior. The results of this study support the effectiveness of nudging approaches rather than marketing activities in changing travel attitudes and encouraging sustainable travel behavior.

Factors Associated With Residential Relocation and Effects on Early Childhood Development in a Low-Income Home Visitation Population.

Residential relocation (RR) is associated with behavior problems and cognitive delays in school-age children. Little is known regarding effects of RR on early childhood development. The data from this study were collected from 2011 to 2016 through the Cincinnati Home Injury Prevention and Literacy Promotion Trial. The purpose of the current study was to identify factors associated with RR and determine effects of RR on early childhood development in a cohort of mother/child dyads (n = 424). High RR was relocating ≥ 3 times over the 24-month study period. Differences in baseline characteristics and early childhood development, measured by the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) and MacArthur Bates Communicative Development Inventory, according to relocations, were estimated by negative binomial regression and logistic regression, respectively. Participants moved on average 1.46 times over 24months. Relocations decreased by 0.05 for each year of increasing maternal age. Mothers with college degrees moved 0.72 fewer times than those with a high school diploma or less. Mothers living alone moved 0.47 fewer times than their counterparts. Mothers who could not count on someone to loan them $1000 and those with food insecurity more (0.41) than their counterparts(0.50). Odds of scoring in the bottom-tertile for the communication domain of the ASQ was significantly higher in those relocating ≥ 3 times. High RR was associated with concern for delayed language development at 24-month follow-up in some, but not all models. Early intervention may be more successful if primary care physicians and community health professionals collaborate to link families at risk of high RR to relevant community based resources.

Residential relocations and changes in vehicle ownership

While the relationship between automobile ownership and the built environment is well established, less is known about how household relocations—specifically, moves between urban and suburban geographies—affect the likelihood of owning an automobile. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and a refined neighborhood typology, I examine the relationship between inter-geography moves and transitions into and out of carlessness. Results suggest that among low-income households, urban-to-suburban movers have an increased likelihood of becoming car owners; those moving in the “opposite” direction—from suburban to urban neighborhoods—show a high propensity to transition into carlessness. Patterns among higher-income households, while similar, are more pronounced. In particular, higher-income carless households that make urban-to-suburban moves are far more likely to become car owners than their low-income counterparts. This highlights the ease with which higher-income households adjust their car ownership levels to suit their post-move neighborhoods. Higher-income suburban-to-urban movers are also more likely to transition into carlessness than low-income households. Importantly, however, only households at the bottom end of the “higher income” distribution have an increased propensity to become carless; suburban-to-urban movers with more financial resources maintain vehicle ownership rates similar to households that remain in the suburbs.

Protracted precarities: The residential mobilities of Poles in Scotland

AbstractThe significant inflow of migrants to the United Kingdom following the Eastern EU Enlargement of 2004 is noteworthy due to its scale, intensity and geographic diversity. Recent statistical data suggest that these migrants exhibit spatial mobilities that reflect their disadvantage not just from the White British but also from other minority groups. Drawing on 83 interviews with Polish migrants living in Scotland, this paper illustrates the often‐persistent residential relocations experienced by this group postinternational migration and considers the drivers behind them. A key driver of this is the cycle of low paid and insecure employment that many migrants become entangled in, most frequently on arrival but often also longer term. These insights speak to wider debates about the scholarly dichotomy between international and internal migration and social inequalities in relation to labour market change and associated exposure to labour market and residential precarities.

Impacts of telecommuting on time use and travel: A case study of a neighborhood telecommuting center in Stockholm

While telecommuting (TC) research heavily discusses travel impacts of home-based TC, little is known about impacts of working from a neighborhood TC center on travel and non-travel activities and their energy requirements. We conduct a case study on the impacts of the work location (employer’s office, TC center, home) on time use and travel using data collected in a neighborhood TC center in Stockholm. Our results show that telecommuters more frequently replaced working from the TC center for working from the more distant employer’s office than for working from home. On TC center and home office days, diarists spent less time traveling, and on home office days more time on chores and leisure than on employer office days. When working from the TC center instead of the employer’s office, telecommuters frequently used the same or more energy-efficient commute modes, e.g. biking instead of the car, which was feasible because the TC center is in the local neighborhood. However, when working from home, diarists mainly used the car for private travel. Thus, energy savings of TC can be increased by providing energy-efficient transport options or local access to non-work destinations to telecommuters. TC energy impacts depend also on changes to energy requirements for non-travel activities, for space heating/cooling/lighting at all work locations, and systemic TC effects (e.g. residential relocation), which can only be observed in the long term. Thus, future TC assessments should take an even broader perspective in terms of travel and non-travel activities, their energy requirements, and systemic effects.

Six-year follow-up study of residential displacement and health outcomes following the 2011 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

Studies examining the long-term health consequences of residential displacement following large-scale disasters remain sparse. Following the 2011 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, victims who lost their homes were resettled by two primary means: 1) group relocation to public housing or 2) individual relocation, in which victims moved into public housing by lottery or arranged for their own accommodation. Little is known about how the specific method of residential relocation affects survivors' health. We examined the association between residential relocation and long-term changes in mental and physical well-being. Our baseline assessment predated the disaster by 7 mo. Two follow-up surveys were conducted ∼2.5 y and 5.5 y after the disaster to ascertain the long-term association between housing arrangement and health status. Group relocation was associated with increased body mass index and depressive symptoms at 2.5-y follow-up but was no longer significantly associated with these outcomes at 5.5-y follow-up. Individual relocation at each follow-up survey was associated with lower instrumental activities of daily living as well as higher risk of cognitive impairment. Our findings underscore the potential complexity of long-term outcomes associated with residential displacement, indicating both positive and negative impacts on mental versus physical dimensions of health.

Diffusive Resettlement: Irreversible Urban Transitions in Closed Systems.

We propose a non-equilibrium framework for modelling the evolution of cities, which describes intra-urban migration as an irreversible diffusive process. We validate this framework using the actual migration data for the Australian capital cities. With respect to the residential relocation, the population is shown to be composed of two distinct groups, exhibiting different relocation frequencies. In the context of the developed framework, these groups can be interpreted as two components of a binary fluid mixture, each with its own diffusive relaxation time. Using this approach, we obtain long-term predictions of the cities’ spatial structures, which define their equilibrium population distribution.

Displacement and estate demolition: multi-scalar place attachment among relocated social housing residents in London

The forced relocation—displacement—of social housing residents resulting from estate regeneration involving demolition has been the subject of considerable academic and policy debate. While some scholars and policy makers regard such displacement as having harmful outcomes in relation to loss of homes and community relations, others argue that residents benefit from relocation as they move to ‘better places’. This paper contributes to this debate, and to the wider 'post-displacement' research agenda, by providing an experiential perspective on residential relocation with reference to in-depth interviews with social housing residents in London who returned to new-build flats at the redeveloped mixed-tenure estates. The paper employs a multi-scalar approach to place attachment which is illustrated and analysed at three spatial scales: domestic (home/dwelling), intermediate (block of flats) and neighbourhood (estate). The home scale is the most positive albeit not unequivocal aspect of residents’ post-displacement experiences, whereas place attachments at the block and neighbourhood scales are characterized by extensive and intensive disruptions and losses.

Air pollution and neurological development in children.

Pregnancy and early childhood are periods with high plasticity in neurological development. Environmental perturbations during these sensitive windows can have lifelong developmental consequences. This review summarizes key findings relevant to the effects of air pollution on neurological development. Mounting evidence suggests that exposure to air pollution, both during pregnancy and childhood, is associated with childhood developmental outcomes ranging from changes in brain structures to subclinical deficits in developmental test scores, and, ultimately, developmental disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders or autism spectrum disorders. Although the biological mechanisms of effects remain to be elucidated, multiple pathways are probably involved and include oxidative stress, inflammation, and/or endocrine disruption. Given the alarming global increase in developmental disorders in recent years, and increased human exposures to pollution, it is critical to reduce personal and community-level exposures through tight collaboration of interdisciplinary and multi-level bodies including community partners, physicians, industry partners, policy makers, public health practitioners, and researchers. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: Exposure to air pollution is associated with a range of childhood developmental complications. Biological mechanisms may include oxidative stress, inflammation, and endocrine disruption.

Relationship between Long-Term Residential Green Exposure and Individuals' Mental Health: Moderated by Income Differences and Residential Location in Urban China.

Environmental health effects during urbanization have attracted much attention. However, knowledge is lacking on the relationship between long-term cumulative residential environment and health effects on individuals during rapid transformations in urban physical and social space. Taking Guangzhou, China, as a case example, this study analyzed the relationship between long-term exposure to green environments and residents’ mental health under urban spatial restructuring. Based on a household survey in 2016, 820 residents who have lived in Guangzhou for more than 15 years were used as the sample. High-resolution remote sensing images were used to assess the long-term green exposure of residents. The results indicate that long-term green exposure in residential areas had a negative correlation with residents’ mental health (p < 0.05), and the correlation was strongest for the cumulative green environment in the last five years. However, this significant effect was moderated by income and residential location. Green exposure had a positive relationship with mental health for low income groups, and a negative relationship for middle and high income groups. In addition, residents living farther away from the city center were likely to have fewer green environmental health benefits. Residential relocation in a rapidly urbanizing and transforming China has led to the continuous differentiation of residential green environments among different income groups, which has also caused different mental health effects from green exposure. It provides empirical evidence and theoretical support for policymakers to improve the urban environment and reduce environmental health disparities by considering social differences and residential location.