Residential Mobility in a Changing Housing Market: the Case of Bucaramanga, Colombia

Abstract

Using empirical evidence from Bucaramanga, Colombia, this paper sets out to demonstrate that patterns of residential mobility among low-income groups are intimately related to the changing structure of the local housing market. Specifically, the paper examines the links which exist between intra-urban migration, housing moves, and the family life cycle, during successive periods in the growth of the city. As the housing market develops, the relationships between the different dimensions of residential mobility are seen to vary quite considerably. This is in sharp contrast to Turner's seminal work on residential mobility among the urban poor in Latin American cities.