Race and Residential Mobility: Individual Determinants and Structural Constraints

Data from over 25,000 respondents of the Annual Housing Survey are used to examine racial differences in the levels and determinants of residential mobility between 1979 and 1980. Cross racial differences in mobility are small, but adjusting for differences in home ownership and other sociodemographic characteristics reveals that, net of these factors, blacks are significantly less likely than nonblacks to change residence in a given year. Both black and nonblack mobility are influenced by life-cycle factors, housing characteristics, and features of the metropolitan area, but there are clear racial differences in the determinants of mobility. Home ownership is less of an impediment to the mobility of blacks than nonblacks, and blacks are less likely to convert neighborhood dissatisfaction into a move. High levels of residential segregation in the metropolitan area create barriers to the mobility of blacks, while large suburban populations and high vacancy rates enhance the mobility prospects of nonblacks.