Transforming the housing landscape: how dwelling construction and tenure conversion affect processes of residential segregation

This project investigates the reciprocal relationship between residential segregation and the housing landscape—the geographic mix of different tenure types and densities.

In so doing, the project shifts the focus of segregation research from the demand-side—the renters and homeowners vying for places to live—to the supply side: the landlords and developers who transform the housing landscape by building, renovating, converting, and selling housing.

Using detailed registry data describing the Swedish population, properties, and building permits, this project uses statistical analyses and computer simulations to investigate a series of research questions designed to explore the relationship between housing and segregation. How is mobility related to the spatial distribution of different housing tenures?

Are decisions about where to build housing, what housing is built, or whether public housing is sold to private actors, related to the social characteristics of neighborhoods?

And how have recent changes in the Swedish housing landscape, particularly the swing toward privatization, contributed to or mitigated patterns of mobility that lead to segregation?

Our results and analytical methods will be of keen interest to national and municipal policy makers looking to reduce segregation while ensuring that all Swedish residents have access to high quality housing.