THE RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY PROCESS IN BELFAST: A CONSIDERATION OF PUBLIC SECTOR TENANCY ALLOCATIONS

Abstract

To explain patterns of public sector tenancy allocations in Belfast, an account is given of the Housing Selection Scheme adopted by the single housing authority in the province, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive. Implicit in the scheme is the concept of housing power, i.e. the differential ability of households to compete for the tenancies available. Using a sample of allocations in the Belfast Urban Area between 1977 and 1978, the spatial implications of the Housing Selection Scheme are examined, and an attempt is made to draw together the main findings with evidence from other residential mobility research in Belfast, notably on the role of ethnicity in the housing relocation process.