Impact of remittance on immigrant homeownership trajectories: An analysis of the LSIC in Canada from 2001 2005 Vincent Z. Kuuire Department of Geography and Planning November 5, 2015.
Outline Introduction Conceptual Framework Data Measures Results Conclusions 2
21,859 247,247 22,850 252,172 24,697 280,690 27,873 248,751 23,056 257,515 3
Background 4
Background 5
Background Indicators of immigrant integration: MIPEX (Migrant Integration Policy Index) Index of Legal obstacles of Integration (LOI) Labour market mobility Political participation Education and language proficiency Mortality, fertility and demographic changes Judicial indicators Housing experiences (Homeownership) and social services Housing experiences examined through an assessment of housing careers. Housing careers (housing trajectory) describe the changes in dwelling consumption of a household over time. 6
Background Benefits of Homeownership Improvement in children s educational outcomes Enhancement of employment stability Enhancement of both physical and mental health Development and deepening of social support networks Commitment to stay in destination country Investment good (building wealth and financial security over time) Improve residential stability and security Promotion of community participation and integration at the neighbourhood and community level Heightened sense of control, personal accomplishment and a status symbol 7
Conceptual Framework
Research Questions Is there a relationship between transnational behaviour (i.e. remittance) and immigrant housing ownership status over time. What are the main factors influencing immigrant housing ownership in Canada?
Methods Data for this study is obtained from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants in Canada (LSIC). Inclusion criteria: Only immigrants processed in a Canadian Consulate abroad who arrived between October 1, 2000 and September 30 2001. 3 Waves: collected at 6 months, 2 years and 4 years. A total of 7,716 remained from the initial 12,040.
Measures Dependent variable: housing ownership Do you or your family/your in-laws/your relatives rent or own this place? and Do you/you and your family have a mortgage or loan to help pay for this place? owners with mortgage, owners without mortgage, Renters and Other (hotel/motel, home of employer) Recoded: 0 = no housing ownership and 1 = housing ownership Housing ownership in Wave 2 and Wave 3 were used in the analysis
Measures Transnationalism variable: remittance engagement Coded as 0 = no remittance engagement and 1 = remittance engagement Remittance engagement from Wave 1 was used in analysis Remittance amount (from wave two) Independent variables: Immigrant category, Gender, Marital status, Educational level at arrival, Ethnicity, Brought savings to Canada Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) of residence, Age, number of children and number of jobs.
Analysis Techniques Immigrants who owned homes in Wave 1 were dropped to avoid contemporaneous analysis (analytical sample=6279). Descriptive statistics Negative log-log regression models Bivariate Multivariate Model 1: Wave 1 independent variables were used to predict housing ownership at Wave 2. Multivariate Model 2: Wave 1 independent variables were used to predict housing ownership at Wave 3.
Results 14
Table 1a: Descriptive Statistics weighted (n=6279)
Table 1b: Descriptive Statistics weighted (n=6279)
Bivariate Models weighted 17
Multivariate Models weighted 18
Discussion and Conclusion Findings are at odds with existing literature which suggests that transnational engagements are associated with integration in host nations. Four possible explanations for findings in this manuscript: Immigrants limited financial resources. Co-insurance agreements and associated obligation to remit. Newcomers do not intend to stay permanently in Canada. Immigrants may not prioritize housing ownership in Canada (relative to their countries of origin). 19
Limitations and Future Research Limitations: The role of household formation. The influence of broader macro-economic conditions were not accounted for. Transnationalism is more than remittance. Future research: Multidimensional measures of housing integration. Impact of transnational housing activities on other aspects of immigrant lives (e.g. wellbeing, educational outcomes of children etc.). 20
Questions?