Territorial Patterns in the Residential Mobility of the High Classes in the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona

Miguel Rubiales-Pérez , Universitat de Barcelona
Jordi Bayona-i-Carrasco, Centre d’Estudis Demogràfics (CED), UAB
Isabel Pujadas, Universitat de Barcelona

The residential migration patterns of the upper classes have been little analyzed at the Barcelona metropolitan level. There are few works on the residential migratory behavior of the upper classes due to the deficiencies of the available spanish statistical sources. These studies find greater migratory intensity between businessmen and managers. Regarding suburbanization, most studies have related the process to the residential sprawl of the middle and lower classes. The upper classes, on the other hand, are generally studied in relation to their greater attraction to the central city (the gentrification processes). We use the census data and the residential variation surveys to assess the residential mobility of the upper classes and their contribution to metropolitan territorial segregation dynamics in various ways: 1) First, the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona is characterized according to the social class (upper, middle and lower) at the municipality level, also for the 20,000 inhabitants administrative units. 2 Then, at the municipal level and for each type of social class, we analyze the evolution of migratory balances in the last 10 years. 3 Finally, at a scale of 20,000 inhabitants, we compare the differential characteristics of the stable population with those of the population that did a recent mobility into the area. Metropolitan internal mobility has a social component visible in the territory and reinforcing the concentration / segregation of the upper classes The crisis has a lower impact on residential mobility towards upper-class municipalities

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 Presented in Session P3. Poster Session Migration, Economics, Environment, Methods, History and Policy