Assessing the Association Between Urban Amenities and Home Squatting Residents: Evidence from Location-Based Service Data in Weihai

Advances in information and communication technologies have reconfigured the relationship between physical and virtual activity spaces and have contributed to more home-centered lifestyles, including home squatting. However, the association between home squatting residents (HSRs) and urban amenities remains understudied. Using location-based services data in Weihai, China, this study identified young HSRs (aged 26–36) and examines their spatial distribution in relation to urban amenities through a Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression model. The findings reveal that the associations between amenity density within a 500-meter neighborhood and HSR density are spatially heterogeneous and vary by amenity type. Traditional brick-and-mortar amenities significantly related with HSR distribution, varying between old and newly developed zones, while real-virtual and virtual support amenities show a differentiated relationship with the Economic Development Zone and Old Town. These insights into the interaction between HSRs and urban amenities can inform urban policymakers to create HSR-friendly communities and may inform context-sensitive planning for integrated online-offline community living circles.