Funding Caribbean Retirement Migration

Housing Wealth Leakage and the Role of Overseas Land Inheritances

Bibliographic Data

ID3638105
AuthorsRicky Joseph (University of Birmingham, corresponding author)
Year2012
Volume38
Issue4
Pages613-629
Publication date2012-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueNew Community (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0047-9586 • E-ISSN: 1469-9451
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/1369183x.2012.659125
OpenAlexW2070530893
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited28

The paper addresses an important gap in the return-migration and housing literatures. Little is known about financial resources and assets used by Caribbean elders embarking on return. Even less is known about patterns of housing investment among those who have second homes. Previous work reveals that home-owners feature more prominently among this cohort than any other housing tenure, suggesting access to housing wealth is a significant financial resource alongside lifetime savings. The literature also suggests that, in addition to land purchased specifically for the purpose of a return, some returnees have access to inherited land in the island of origin. The paper argues that greater attention should be paid to the role of home-ownership status, housing wealth leakage into the Caribbean and land inheritance within return-migration planning for this group. Life-history accounts are drawn from a sample of Caribbean home-owners based in Birmingham and London at different stages of return-migration planning. The theoretical framework used to explore the risks and opportunities of return-migration planning locates the resources available to returnees within broader networks of financial, social and kinship networks

Business · Demographic economics · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Kinship · Land tenure · Political science · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy · Finance