Why Did Urban Exodus Occur during the COVID-19 Pandemic from the Perspective of Residential Preference of Each Type of Household? Case of Japanese Metropolitan Areas

Miyu Komaki, Haruka Kato () and Daisuke Matsushita
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Miyu Komaki: Department of Housing and Environmental Design, Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka 5588585, Japan
Haruka Kato: Department of Housing and Environmental Design, Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka 5588585, Japan
Daisuke Matsushita: Department of Housing and Environmental Design, Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology, Osaka Metropolitan University, Osaka 5588585, Japan

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 4, 1-19

Abstract: The background of this study is the urban exodus that occurred in Japanese metropolitan areas. The research question of this study is about the reasons why the urban exodus occurred in Japanese metropolitan areas. For the analysis, the objective of this study is to clarify the residential preferences of each household type in relation to the urban exodus during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japanese metropolitan areas. The method of this study is a web questionnaire survey. The sample comprised 593 respondents who migrated from ordinance-designed cities to other municipalities in metropolitan areas between April 2020 and March 2022. In conclusion, this study elucidates that migrant household type as urban exodus is households whose eldest child had enrolled in elementary school or above. Regarding residential preferences, the household type changes the importance of community and environment, rather than the working arrangement. This result is novel and essential because it clarifies that the household type tends to place more importance on the quality of childcare environment, ties to communities, the presence of a large garden/balcony, and utilizing opportunities to experience the community, such as via trial migration support programs.

Keywords: urban exodus; COVID-19 pandemic; residential preference; household type; Japanese metropolitan areas; childcare environment; tie to communities; access to workplaces (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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