Wohnstandortentscheidungen von Haushalten am Beispiel Mannheim

Abstract

By the end of 2025, Mannheim’s population will have increased slightly to reach 312,700. Just as in other major cities in Germany, the fear in Mannheim is that continuing suburbanisation and net gains in population resulting from immigration will lead to long-term social segregation. It is against this background that the city of Mannheim joined forces with the GBG-Mannheimer Wohnungsbaugesellschaft mbH, a local housing association, to commission a study into the motives underlying relocation. Starting with a brief attempt to contextualise the issue at hand, this paper details the procedure applied and presents a comparative survey based on demographic structure and the motives underlying relocation for households moving into, out of, or within the city. One topic of special interest is city-to-hinterland migration and the conditions under which such households would be prepared to return to the city. The study concludes by showing how Mannheim’s residential neighbourhoods are capable of satisfying quite diverse housing needs; consequently, the city is well placed to enhance its appeal as a place to live and to counter the trend towards suburbanisation.

Keywords

• Urban development
• Relocation motives
• Suburbanisation
• Re-urbanisation
• Housing preferences
• Values orientation