The Life Course and Residential Mobility in British Housing Markets

Abstract

There is a substantial research literature on residential mobility in general, and the role of housing space in triggering moves in particular. The authors extend that research to mobility in British housing markets, using data from the British Household Panel Survey. They confirm the applicability of the general residential mobility model and also confirm the value both of pooled cross-sectional and of true longitudinal models of residential change. Age, tenure, and room stress (housing-space requirements) are found to be significant predictors of moving. In addition, the life course ‘triggers' of marital-status change and, in some situations, birth of a child play important roles in moving within housing markets in the United Kingdom. The same model, with somewhat lower levels of fit, is also significant for the London region. Variables that measure the desire to move and neighborhood satisfaction also play a role in predicting local moves: those who like their neighborhood are generally less likely to move. The results offer support for the view that residential mobility is a demographically driven process which also reflects the connection with neighborhood contexts.

Considering, planning, and realizing migration in early adulthood. The influence of life-course events and perceived opportunities on leaving the city in Germany

“…The evidence concerning the association between the occurrence of childbirth and migration is mixed. In some studies, no effect (Clark and Huang 2003;Clark and Ledwith 2006) or even a negative effect (Li 2004) was found. Clark and Huang (2003) found childbirth to have an impact on moving in a longitudinal analysis but not in a cross-sectional analysis.…”

“…In some studies, no effect (Clark and Huang 2003;Clark and Ledwith 2006) or even a negative effect (Li 2004) was found. Clark and Huang (2003) found childbirth to have an impact on moving in a longitudinal analysis but not in a cross-sectional analysis. Michielin and Mulder (2008) found that short-distance moves were frequent during pregnancy.…”

“…In these cases an unpredictable job offer apparently impeded the execution of mobility plans. Interestingly, actual migration behavior was often found to be hardly influenced by the satisfaction with local conditions or perceived opportunity differentials (Landale and Guest 1985;De Jong et al 1985/86;Sly and Wrigley 1985/86;Fuller et al 1985/86;Kalter 1997;Clark 2003;Fang 2006). With the advancement of the process of relocation or migration decision-making, the satisfaction with local conditions seems to lose its influence.…”

“…Kulu (2008) found that the expectancy of a first birth enhances the likelihood of moving not only for couples but also for single persons and concludes that these moves are related to union formation. Any change in marital status enhances the risk of moving significantly (Clark and Huang 2003;Li 2004;Clark and Ledwith 2006) and naturally this also holds for divorce and separation.…”

“…starting to live with a partner (Wagner 1989;Mulder 1993;Mulder and Hooimeijer 1999;Clark and Huang 2003;Geist and McManus 2008). Furthermore, opportunity differentials between the place of residence and a possible destination have been considered to play a major part since the very beginning of migration research (e.g.…”