Residential trajectories of high-skilled transnational migrants in a global city: Exploring the housing choices of Russian and Italian professionals in London

《Residential trajectories of high-skilled transnational migrants in a global city: Exploring the housing choices of Russian and Italian professionals in London》

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关键字: Transnational migration;Housing choices;High-skilled migrants;Qualitative study;London;Brexit

作者单位: Department of the Social Sciences, Gran Sasso Science Institute, Viale F. Crispi, 7, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy;Department of Geography, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK;Department of the Social Sciences, Gran Sasso Science Institute, Viale F. Crispi, 7, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy;Department of Geography, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK

摘要: This paper explores the residential trajectories of highly skilled transnational migrants in London. It analyses this under-researched topic by drawing on interview data with 32 mostly Italian and Russian migrants. The paper unveils the motivations of migrant housing preferences and residential behaviour across three interlinked stages: (i) housing expectations and initial housing choices, (ii) residential mobility over the migration period, (iii) future residential and migration plans. Two exogenous factors are brought into the analysis: the high prices in the London housing market, and the potential impact of Brexit on future residential plans. Findings suggest that Italians build multi-stage housing careers with many moves during their stay, yet geared to an upward housing trajectory, whilst the Russians demand high-quality housing from the start, are less inclined to multi-occupancy, and move less often. Part of the explanation for the difference lies in different ‘housing cultures’ brought from the country of origin.