Modeling residential mobility decisions from a life history–oriented perspective

ABSTRACT

It is critical to investigate residential mobility decisions to better understand the residential relocation. Mobility is identified as a vital component of the integrated transportation-land use modeling. However, limited studies capture the longer-term temporal changes during the household’s life-course. This study adopts a life history–oriented approach to investigate effects of life-trajectory dynamics on mobility. The advanced hazard-based model captures heterogeneity and accommodates effects of repeated spells along the life-course of households. The model uses data from a retrospective survey conducted in Central Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada. Parameter estimation results confirm effects of life-cycle events, sociodemographics, and accessibility. For instance, households might be active in housing market following the birth of a child. The model confirms the existence of heterogeneity. For example, urban dwellers might trigger a move following the marriage of a household member; in contrast, suburban dwellers might continue to have a longer duration of stay.

KEYWORDS:

• Residential mobility
• multiple spell
• life history–oriented
• hazard-based latent segment duration model
• unobserved heterogeneity
• repeated observations

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) - Discovery Grant for their financial support. The authors would also like to thank Corrie Thirkell for proof-reading this paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada [Discovery Grant].