Carmella PFAFFENBACH, RWTH University - Department of Geography, Germany
Sabine WECK, ILS - Research Institute for Regional and Urban Development, Germany
Stefan FINA, ILS - Research Institute for Regional and Urban Development, Germany
Julian SCHMITZ, ILS - Research Institute for Regional and Urban Development, Germany
For several years, a reinforcement of social inequalities as well as a more pronounced concentration of low-income households can be observed in German cities. This development is due to sharply rising rental prices as well as a decline in affordable and public housing offers that are more and more concentrated in less attractive parts of the cities. With this research project, we aim to address to what extent regional or local housing market developments are limiting possibilities of finding adequate housing for low-income households and thus lead to intensified segregation processes on regional and local scale.
First an analysis of data on the development of purchasing power over the past ten years on a small-scale grid (1sqkm) revealed an increase in local disparities and segregation of low-income households in German city regions. In order to examine differences and commonalities across Germany, three city regions were selected for extended analysis in a second phase of the project. With the aim of gaining insights into the specifics of the local contexts and the development of socio-economic structures over time (new or persistent spatial patterns), we conducted interviews with local experts (urban development and planning, social infrastructure). Furthermore, we analysed the availability of social infrastructure in the chosen municipalities.
In our presentation, we will illustrate different perspectives from core cities as well as small and medium-sized municipalities in the surrounding area of the selected city regions on the concentration of low-income households based on our data analysis. In addition, we will discuss driving factors underlying these segregation processes and highlight to what extent housing market structures as well as socio-political strategies determine the possibilities of low-income households in finding adequate housing and thus shape the quality of life of this urban population group.
Keywords: low-income households|residential segregation|spatial concentration|spatio-temporal development
A103071DM