Sociologický ústav AV ČR, v.v.i.

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2002:05 Housing Careers in the Czech Republic 1960 - 2001

Petr Sunega, Daniel Čermák, Zdenka Vajdová

Housing careers have come to be a frequently discussed subject in many studies on housing presented in foreign academic literature. The study at hand represents the first more comprehensive publication devoted to this subject in the Czech Republic. Readers have the opportunity to become familiar with the basic concepts of this field and the results of the work of some researchers. The analytic part of the study is based on an observation of the personal housing histories, in the period between 1960 and 2001, of Czech citizens who were respondents in the Housing Attitudes in the Czech Republic 2001 study. A comparison of the behaviour in the age 14-24 age cohort of respondents from various age categories made it possible to formulate a hypothesis on the homogeneity of the early phases of the housing careers of people who at the time of the survey were aged 25 and over. At the same time it was possible to observe certain signs of a specific behaviour among the respondents in the youngest age category. With the aid of the method of logistic regression comparisons were made among the respondents in the individual age categories of the chances that in the past they had moved, in the light of some knowledge of the circumstances characterising the early phases of their housing careers. The analysis of preferred housing consumption showed that although on average the least satisfied with the size of their housing were the respondents from the youngest age category, an 'excessive' consumption of housing would be preferred particularly by respondents at a higher age. The formation of a typology of housing careers in the Czech Republic led to the identification of the seven most frequent types of housing careers. Using the method of loglinear analysis respondents typical for each type were also identified. The criteria for identifying the respondents proved to be their age and the income of the household to which they belong.

Summary

The analytical part of the text seeks the answer to the question of how much homogeneity exists between the early phases of the housing career of young people aged 14-24 during the period between 1960 and 2001. In other words, to determine whether any significant change occurs with respect to the age at which people first leave home/change their housing occupant status with the aim of becoming independent from their parents, getting married, or starting a family. The results essentially confirmed the hypothesis that homogeneity among the early phases of the housing trajectories in the period 1960-95 is quite high and especially valid in the case of respondent's aged 25 and over. The average age at which respondents in this category left home was 20.5 years of age. The methods by which these respondents acquired their first housing were also similar. The behaviour of the 18-24 age category with respect to leaving home and seeking their first housing indicates that from around the mid-1990s a difference has occurred in the early phase of the housing career. Other factors, such as the reason for changing their occupant status and the manner in which the new housing was acquired seem also to confirm the hypothesis. The explanation for the differentiation in the early phases of housing trajectories as of the mid-1990s should be sought in the society-wide changes ushered in after 1989. The above-mentioned claim that a shift has occurred in the behaviour pattern among the youngest age category should be verified through more detailed analyses working with narrower age cohorts in further studies.
With the use of logistic regression the chances of the respondents in their first, second and third changes in occupant status with regard to the conditions relating to the housing prior to the changes. The analyses were carried out for the age cohorts 14-24 and 25-34. In other words, within each respective analysis, moves (changes in occupant status) were observed which were made by all the age categories within a specific age span (14-24). The results were then compared among all the age categories established according to the respondents' ages in the year 2001. In the 14-24 age cohort the age of the respondent proved to be a significant factor for positively influencing the chances of the respondent to experience within the given age span at least one move (or change in occupant status). Also it was found that women in the 18-24 age cohort initiate their housing career earlier than men, although this statement is valid only for the two youngest age categories of respondents (i.e. those who in 2001 were aged 34 and under). Conversely, in the 25-34 age cohort a second change in occupant status was registered among men more often than women. Significantly higher chances of moving (or changing occupant status) were observed in all evaluated changes of residence among respondents with the following types of tenures relating to the house/flat: member of a household of a tenant in a residence related to employment, tenant in a residence related to employment, member of a household of a tenant in a council flat. The geographic location and size of the community in which the respondent's preceding residence was located proved not be of significance in influencing the chances of an ensuing change of residence. Also, it was found that the later (the higher the age) people made their first (second) change of residence, the lower the chances were that they moved a second (third) time. The predominant reason for the first and second move (change in occupant status) in the 18-24 cohort was the wish to get married or start a family, while among individuals aged 34 and under the frequency of this reason behind the first move declined as the wish to live independently and become independent from one's parents rose in its place. In the 25-34 age category the dominant reason behind the second move begins to be that of divorce, separation, and death (for age categories 25-34 and 35-44), or new employment and moving closer to the place of work (age category 45-54). The analyses observing the migration of respondents among various size categories of communities revealed that the first step in the career especially is usually connected with a change in geographic location and the size of the community (with any significant differences among the age cohorts). In the case of the first move also the majority of respondents who in moving changed the size of their community moved to a community with a larger number of inhabitants. In the case of the second and third move respondents of this type were the minority.
A comparison of the subjective evaluation of the changes in individual residences by the respondents and of the evaluation of these changes on the basis of transitions between various tenure forms of occupant status revealed that an improvement (worsening) of the legal relationship to the residence in a number of cases did not indicate an improvement (worsening) of the housing conditions from the perspective of the respondent. The reason is undoubtedly that the tenure of the flat/house represents only one factor along an entire scale of factors that influence satisfaction with the change in residence.
In researching the preferred consumption of housing it was discovered that the category that is least satisfied with the relative size (with regard to the number of members of a household) of the house or flat in which they live is made up primarily of members of the youngest age category of respondents. Among those people who are not satisfied with the size of their current housing and would like to live in a house or flat with a larger number of rooms, by at least one, than there are members of the household we can find almost twice as many of the respondents aged 55 and over in comparison with the share of those in the youngest age category. More detailed analysis showed that especially males with post-secondary education, today living in housing usually associated with the comfort of a larger residential space (e.g. family home, home in the countryside etc.), would give preference to a higher household consumption.
The evaluation of anticipated future moves by respondents over the period of the next three years, starting in 2001, brought expected results in the sense that the intention to change their housing was expressed particularly by the youngest respondents, with the dominant reasons for doing so being the intention to marry, start a family, or become independent from their parents. Greater chances for future moves were found among respondents from households with higher levels of income who do not consider their present housing to be ideal and feel a lack of sufficient living space.
The formation of a typology of housing trajectories and the corresponding classification of respondents in the specific types of trajectories was achieved in several steps. First the various tenures were reduced to four basic types of housing: privately owned, tenant, cooperative, other. These housing types were used to trace the housing trajectories of the individual respondents. As the respondents figured in a far too large range of housing trajectories, an approach was made to formulate a typology of housing trajectories. These types of trajectories had to be capable of encompassing all the types of trajectories observed, and the same time were not to overlap. The following seven types of housing trajectories were determined: continually private, continually in rental, in rental and in cooperative, oscillating, upward, downward, and other. The next step was to identify which of the housing career types the respondents belonged to. They were classified according to the following indices: age, marital status, sex, education, political orientation (self-classification - leftwing/rightwing, and household income. These indices were examined in connection with the types of housing trajectories. Political orientation and sex proved to be unsuitable for identifying respondents. The most suitable indices for distinguishing respondents according to their appurtenance to a particular career were the age of the respondent and the income of the household in which he or she lives. The analyses showed that as the level of income increases so does the share of respondents who have experiences upward and oscillating trajectories, and conversely the share of people who have figured in the continually in rental and the downward trajectories declines. Among young people, regardless of income, there is always the lowest number of those who figure in the oscillating career.

Keywords

Housing careers, types of housing careers, typology of housing careers, life cycle, life course, consumption of housing, housing attitudes, moving history, intended mobility, occupant status, tenure, age cohort, age category, loglinear analysis, logistic analysis