Retiring in the suburbs? Residential strategies in two Prague suburbs

Abstract

ABSTRACT Suburbanization is the most significant process involved in shaping the socio-spatial structure of many western European and post-Socialist cities. In Prague, suburbanization began in the mid-1990s. In contrast with most studies, we consider the suburbs not as a final residential destination but as a place that people leave as a result of life-phase changes. For example, families who moved to the suburbs in the mid-1990s and early 2000s, and are now empty-nest households, may wish to move away. In an attempt to analyse future residential mobility and strategies for later-life suburban households in Czechia, we conducted a questionnaire survey in two suburban municipalities (n = 177). Respondents were aware that as they aged, their current residences and residential environments were likely to become less suitable. Nevertheless, most of our respondents were “stayers” and employed various assimilative coping strategies to adapt their homes, rather than moving or leaving the suburbs. It is suggested that a greater emphasis be placed on the promotion of barrier-free housing solutions and the use of innovative technologies.