Residential preferences.

Other author in the intent to get to the root causes of residential segregation started a new line of investigation developed in the 80s and which continue up to our days: the residential preferences as the main axis of the urban space.

When referring to this approach is inevitable mentioning William A. V. Clark on of the authors who mainly developed this approximation realizing numerous empiric Works in Los Angeles. However, he was the first to consider the idea of residential preference

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being the principal cause of residential segregation since the influence of the White

avoidance or the refusal of whites to share the same residential zone with other

groups as the explanatory factor of segregation. Despite the fact that the hypothesis of the refusal of or level of intolerance of Americans with Anglo-Saxon origin towards other groups could partly explain the phenomenon, posterior investigations show that it did offer a complete interpretation (Denton and Massey, 1991). Schumann (1985) and Clark (1992) show that only a third of the American from Anglo-Saxon origin choose to live in a homogenous zone (mostly white), making it necessary the existence of other series of processes that explain the spatial distribution. Schelling (1971) was the first to mention the impact of the residential preferences or choices of various groups in the city. The author points out that the spontaneous behaviour of minority groups towards others can have as result an organized and visible structure. In this sense, Clark broadens the study of the residential preferences to the Anglo-Saxon, Asian, Afro American and Latin groups of the city of Los Angeles, in order to test the impact of such preferences on the urban mosaic. The study shows that the Anglo- Saxon group is not the only one expressing refusal when it comes to residing together with other communities in the same zone and for that reason the theory of the White

avoidance is not solid enough to explain the phenomenon, since the rest of the groups

also show a certain tendency in choosing racial homogenous zones (Clark, 1992). Zones characterized by the same racial composition and with a series of infrastructures and equipment (Checa, 2006).

“Although much behaviour generally follows expressed preferences, members of households who expressed “no preferences” also were found to largely choose own race neighbourhoods. The result of this study suggest that the expressed preference for own race/own ethnicity, in combination with short-distance local movers, is likely to maintain present patterns of separation in U.S. metropolitan areas “(Clark, 1992).

So, according to the author, each community would prefer to reside in zones where people of their same ethnical and racial origin reside especially the Anglo-Saxon community. For the author, more than economic or discriminatory factors, the main the factor intervening in explaining discrimination would be the voluntary decision to live as an endogenous manner.

However, nowadays some authors base their explanations on the concepts of self-

segregation of some local groups. A mixture between the fleeing from zones with

increased diversity of the white people (white flight) and the construction of zones populated exclusively by whites (Bolt, Ozuekren and Phillips, 2010). Bolt exposed in the case of the Netherlands in 2008 that, the growth of the ethnical segregation was closely related to the tendency of the Dutch to move to zones where ethical minorities reside (Bolt et al., 2008).

In the same line, Kempen and Ozuekren realize a theoretical classification where they differentiate the Behavioral Approach from the ethnic-cultural Approach. The result is that both approaches try to explain segregation from the perspective of individual decisions (Kempen and Ozuekren, 1998). The Behavioral Approach takes into account

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the residential preferences, perceptions and individual decisions in terms of housing and residential varieties considering the demand in housing as the context of study to explain the distribution of the urban space. The ethnic-cultural Approach would add a nuance to the behavioral one including in the analysis an element of diversity.

“Housing conditions and residential patterns differ between these groups and these differences can be attributed to cultural differences between these groups. There is a clear element of ‘choice’ in this approach” (Kempen y Ozuekren, 1998).

In this sense the different communities show different cultural patterns which explanation could be the cultural differences themselves. Bases on this perspective, the residential choices can be understood as cultural preferences but also as defensive reactions against racist practices of the house owners. This perspective also recognizes an heterogeneity within the sub-community itself or category, this means that the Maghreb do not share the same Cosmo vision resulting in them having identic behaviours in their way of life in general and in the residential field in particular (Kempen and Ozuekren, 1998). The authors analyse the European reality under this perspective using a qualitative methodology through enquiries and interviews this developing a line of investigation called housing careers or residential itineraries (Kempen y Ozuekren, 2002).

Recently and in the same line, authors such as Ross, build on the explanatory argument of residential preferences in the distribution of the urban space, basing their work not only on racial preferences but also on the social interaction-outcomes paring (Ross, 2003). For the author, the consumers try to maximize the utility of their time in the residential zone dividing it between their personal time and their social interactions. The conflictual relation between the two variables is what the author uses to analyse the distribution of people living in the urban zone.

“Specifically, the theoretical and empirical models in this paper assume that households do not have preferences for neighborhood racial composition, nor for other easily observable location attributes like percent poverty or average education, but rather assume that apparent preferences for observed location attributes are derived demands that arise from a household’s underlying preference for social interaction or for positive outcomes that arise from those social interactions. Prejudice, cultural affinity, and other factors related to race and ethnicity may influence outcomes, but they do so by affecting the quality of across group social interactions” (Ross, 2003:2).

According to this approach, the different communities would consider necessary different infrastructures and equipment in order to foment their specific social interaction. For example in a zone where a big percentage of people living there are Basque would require a fronton for allowing people to play the Basque pelota a game specifically played in Euskal Herria. It is little probable that other communities require that kind of public equipment. So, Ross affirms that they are rather that kind of equipment that makes residing in a given zone attractive for some people.

76 2.3.3.3 Discrimination.

However, this theoretical development was not free from debate. At the end of the 80s there started an academic debate between Clark, who was defending the residential preferences as explanatory basis of segregation and George Galster, who proposed a new model of analysis in which discrimination is the main element to be taken into account. That gave birth to a new line of investigation which considers racial discrimination as the fundamental element in analysing discrimination occurring in the urban configuration. The new line of investigation goes beyond the academic debates including illegal discrimination as a category of analysis. So in his article published in 1988, the author affirms that acts of discrimination caused by real estate agents en the housing market is a fundamental pieces in the residential discrimination processes (Galster, 1988:93). A part from that the author differentiates two types of discrimination as causes partly of segregation: on one hand is what could be called as

Public discrimination referring to the policies of land and housing at the local and

national levels. In the US the tendency is to locate social houses in disadvantaged zones perpetuating in that way situations of segregation. Although he states that he cannot prove the empiric role of the State as causer of segregation, the author states that:

“It seems doubtful, however, that more than a minor fraction of the observed racial residential patterns can be directly linked to housing and land use policies of governments” (Galster, 1988: 104).

On the other hand we could notice the Private discrimination or the discrimination suffered by members of certain communities from house owners and real estate agents when trying to look for housing in zones populated by the autochthones9_{. As} indicated by the author, in order to be considered as relevant this last factor has first to be proved as occurring in a significant number of cases and secondly that these cases have to coincide to discrimination situations. He then emphasizes the difficulty to measure empirically the discrimination situations which are only reported in the 1% of the cases. . This last factor for the author has a big explanatory capacity although it is not really taken into account due to the mentioned difficulties. Focusing on the Afro American community, the author affirms that independently of their income, this group suffers discrimination en the segmented residential market in which that community resides in more degraded houses and zones. (Checa, 2006: 102).

The author however concludes that discrimination cannot be explained uniquely considering illegal discrimination since in discrimination also intervene factors of the market (wages, preferences, localization of Jobs and the access to information) as pointed out by Clark and other authors.

“Market forces remain significant contributors to segregation, but the equally significant role of private acts of discrimination on the housing market cannot be denied by an objective observer of the evidence” (Galster, 1988:108).

9 _{Non-minority neighbourhoods}

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In that sense, Alicia Munnell (1996) stated that there exists a so called discrimination exercised by individuals. According to that the American from Anglo-Saxon origin were not willing to sell or rent their houses to the Afro Americans provoking thus the appearance and maintaining of so called gated communities10 _{or gated enclaves.} (Checa, 2006:102). In her reasoning, the author goes beyond the discrimination exercised by house owners and real estate agents proving the discrimination existing in the concession of loans in function of the ethnic origin as in the case of Boston (Munnell et al., 1996). The results show that the Afro Americans and Latins are mostly rejected than the American from Anglo-Saxon even is the two groups are in the same situations. Moreover immigrants with high level of incomes are more likely to be rejected than those from Anglo-Saxon origin with low incomes. Definitely the author shows us a situation of systematic discrimination in the concession of mortgages motivated by the race (Munnell et al., 1996:50).

The barriers in getting a loan, especially a mortgage impact the urban distribution, making it impossible for people (members of ethnical minorities) to move to other zones even they are willing to do so.

“Access to credit markets is vital to disadvantaged minorities if they are to overcome the low level of their initial endowments. The difficulties in obtaining loans, particularly in the case of mortgage, would clearly make it impossible for minorities to escape or improve poor neighbourhoods” (Munnell et al., 1996:25).

The residential discrimination suffered by the immigrant community in general -and some nationalities in particular- is also considered by many authors as one of the most relevant factors when talking of residential segregation. Despite its relevance, this aspect has not been deeply studied due to the difficulty to measure and operationalize a subjective and little desired dimension which few times is expressed in discourses. However and despite of such difficulties some studies reveal its existence in some instances at a larger or small scale. In the case of Spain, the IOE community shows us not only the existing inequalities for immigrants in accessing housing but also the direct discrimination suffered by that community for the mere fact of being immigrant (IOE, 2004). In the case of Catalonia and Madrid almost 47% of the immigrants interviewed affirmed having suffered a situation in which they have being denied the opportunity to rent or buy a house based on the fact that they are strangers. This situation occurs mostly in the case of the African community, especially among the immigrants from Morocco.

In the case of Bilbao, SOS Racism in collaboration with con CEAR-Euskadi, carried on an enquiry in a study called “Testing Estate Agencies 2011” which results were really of big relevance (CEAR and SOS RACISMO, 2011). The investigation has been carried out through the technique of Testing, “Empiric test in which people from different

origins but with the same characteristics try to get access to a service. In that case, if

10 _{Concept developed by Blakely and Gail (1997) in Fortress America. Gated communities in the} United Estates.

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there exist a degree of inequality; it could only be motivated by discrimination” (CEAR

and SOS RACISMO, 2011:56), used before in housing studies. 7 different groups composed of autochthones and immigrant in similar conditions (age, sex employment) visited 28 buildings in Bilbao.

The study reveals two dimensions: the socio-economic and the racial or ethnical. Concerning the first, the high prices of houses or even of rooms coupled with the requirement of formal backups (such as working contract or bank guarantee) supposes a fundamental problem for a community victim of labor precariousness. In that sense, the immigrant women, working in their majority in sectors of house services and babysitting, characterized by the informality and low incomes, would be a community specially affected by the residential exclusion due to socio-economic causes (CEAR and SOS RACISMO, 2011).

There also exist a residential discrimination for ethnic-racial causes, this means denying the access to housing to someone for that fact of him or her being immigrant or a list of houses someone to access based on her or him being immigrant or autochthone. This discrimination happens when it comes to individual owners or estate agencies where the advertisement has a clear discriminatory message with texts like: “only for autochthones” or “Do not mind this announce if you are immigrant”. The report also shows that, the el 65% of the house owners would only rent their houses to nationals and the 50% of the estate agencies would not offer immigrants the possibility to access housing though them. The African community is the most affected by this form of discrimination (CEAR and SOS RACISMO, 2011). To the above mentioned questions, we have to add the fact that many of the house owners do not offer the possibility of register of legal contract. This fact is especially relevant for the third national immigrants for whom being registered, as well as being able to legalize their situation by acquiring the legal residence papers if they are able to prove their period they have being living here. And this is only done through the certificate of register