This study by Hill Kulu et al. (2021) investigates the magnitude and persistence of elevated post-separation residential mobility (i.e. residential instability) in five countries (Australia, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK) with similar levels of economic development, but different welfare provisions and housing markets. To investigate the impact of separation on residential mobility in a cross-national context, the authors use data from the following sources: the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA), the 2001 Belgian Census linked with the Population Register for the period 2001–2006, the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (NKPS), and the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS). Using longitudinal data and applying Poisson regression models, the authors study the risk of a move of separated men and women compared with cohabiting and married individuals. The analysis shows that separated men and women are significantly more likely to move than cohabiting and married individuals. The risk of a residential change is the highest shortly after separation, and it decreases with duration since separation. However, the magnitude of this decline varies by country. In Belgium, mobility rates remain elevated for a long period after separation, whereas in the Netherlands, post-separation residential instability appears brief, with mobility rates declining rapidly. The results suggest that housing markets are likely to shape the residential mobility of separated individuals. In countries, where mortgages are easy to access and affordable rental properties are widespread, separated individuals can rapidly adjust their housing to new family circumstances; in contrast, in countries with limited access to homeownership and small social rental markets, separated individuals experience a prolonged period of residential instability.
Kulu, H., Mikolai, J., Thomas, M.J. et al. Separation and Elevated Residential Mobility: A Cross-Country Comparison. Eur J Population 37, 121–150 (2021). DOI.
