Motives of Residential Mobility in Braunschweig

In collaboration with ISOE, the city of Braunschweig asked inhabitants about their motives for relocating.

Research approach

A total of 710 households in Braunschweig were surveyed in order to explore their reasons for relocating. In 2008 they had either moved away from or to the Braunschweig districts Weststadt and Südwestliches Ringgebiet. An additional 441 households who had moved from Braunschweig to the hinterland were also surveyed. Scientists collected data on the previous and new homes as well as on the living environment. They primarily questioned the residents in detail about their reasons for relocating.

The results of the survey on motives behind relocation provide the town and housing associations/companies with important clues on how to proceed. With this data they were better able to cater for future demand in the two urban residential districts.

This trial, using a detailed survey on motives behind relocation, was one of the modules in the research project Demand-oriented usage cycle management.

Background

What reasons do residents have for moving home within a big city or moving away from it? One often finds private reasons for such a decision. Frequently, however, it is also triggered or encouraged by the quality of living resulting from factors such as the inadequate quality of the fittings in the flat/house itself, the social environment, or the leisure and public utilities in the area. These factors can be crucial for many residential districts and settlements of the 1950s to 1970s that have seen better days.