Mobility, Housing Stress and Neighborhood Contexts: Evidence from Los Angeles

PWP-CCPR-2005-004

Abstract

This paper examines, in two separate analyses, actual and planned residential moves. Although we now have robust models and substantive empirical analysis of residential mobility, especially of the role of housing consumption and the variables that trigger residential moves, we are less clear about how the model applies to minority households and in diverse ethnic settings. This paper uses data from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Study – a longitudinal study of mobility and neighborhood change in the Los Angeles region to contrast the mobility outcomes for white and Latino households. A separate analysis examines planned mobility and extends the analysis of the role of neighborhood variables in explaining expected mobility. The incorporation of measures of neighborhood satisfaction and dissatisfaction finds, as hypothesized, that low levels of satisfaction and whether or not the neighborhood is perceived as “close-knit” are modest predictors of the likelihood of future moves. However, the additive effect of neighborhood variables, beyond the structural effects of age and housing needs, on intentions is quite small.