Influences on the City-Suburban Choice A Study of Cincinnati Homebuyers

Abstract

In this study, stepwise discriminant analysis was applied to a mailed questionnaire sample of 1,738 Hamilton County (Cincinnati, Ohio) homebuyers to identify characteristics that are most important in predicting city and suburban choices. The results confirmed the continued importance of family life cycle and life style, be it familial or cosmopolitan. Families with children that were seeking larger homes and trying to escape troubled city public schools bought in the suburbs. College-educated householders without children and those seeking neighborhood diversity and accessibility to employment chose the city. Other factors, such as race, income, and the desire to preserve neighborhood social relations also played an important role. In the short run, the most promising strategy for cities like Cincinnati is to try to identify “market niches” (e.g., highly educated cosmopolites without children) where the city already has a market advantage, and to develop programs to attract and hold a larger share of these subpopulations.