Are young adults’ choices temporary or permanent? Navigating economic recession with residential location and household expenditure

ABSTRACT

This study started from changes in young adults’ choices of residential location and travel behavior since the 2010s, which differ from the prior generations. This study aimed to determine whether the observed choices represent permanent shifts in preference changes or temporary responses to specific circumstances. Using longitudinal data and statistical models, this study analyzed the impact of the economic recession on the residential choices of young adults and their household expenditure. The analysis results indicate that young adults’ choices are likely temporary responses to economic hardship. Young adults showed different choices in relocation and household expenditure during the recession, compared to before and after the recession, and reduced their housing and transportation expenditures during the recession, whereas the older age group did not. The young adult model indicated that increasing the location distance from cities increased their housing and transportation expenditure, which differed from the older adult model. Lastly, lower-income young adults chose to relocate, and the lowest-income group moved to areas closer to city centers. These findings have implications for urban development and smart growth policies, namely, providing various housing options in cities, including more affordable housing, and improving public transit systems for more young adults to use.

KEYWORDS:

• Young adults
• economic recession
• residential location
• housing expenditure

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. There is no clear classification regarding the distance or size of cities, and their shapes are different. For the analysis, this study assumed that a distance of 10 miles from the city center represents the urban core and city areas, 10–20 miles represents the periphery of a city or the inner suburban area of an MSA, 20–30 miles represents the outer suburban area of an MSA, and more than 30 miles represents a rural area.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jaeyong Shin

Jaeyong Shin is an assistant professor in the Department of Urban Planning and Design at the Keimyung University in South Korea. Shin holds a master’s degree in Community and Regional Planning from the University of Texas at Austin and a PhD in Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois at Chicago. His research primarily focuses on three areas: (1) the choice behaviors of various age groups (e.g., residential choice and travel behavior), (2) urban spatial structure, particularly relationship between land use and transportation, and (3) the issue of regional decline with an aim to promote balanced development.