Arrival spaces of immigrants in Vienna

The Viennese Population has been growing steadily since 2001. For the dura-tion that this study focuses (2008-2014) on, total growth amounted to 5,5 %. This was due mainly to immigration from both abroad and other parts of Austria. In effect, over the last couple of years Vienna´s population has become characterised by more Europeans and more people originally born in Western Austria. Their shares in the population increased, while percentages of people born in Vienna, Lower Austria and the Burgenland, as well as the rest of the World dropped.

This study focuses especially on the group of newly arrived, foreign-born im-migrants to Vienna, i.e. Persons who registered a permanent residence in Vienna for the first time. Since 2008, the city experiences a yearly increasing influx of around 30.000 new arrivals of foreign birth. Around 16.000 each year were born in the countries of Germany, Poland, Romania, Hungary and former Yugoslavia (incl. Croatia). Among these, the trends are somewhat different than among the resident population: Shares of new arrivals from Germany, Poland and Romania, the East and South of Europe and other parts of the World are decreasing (-1,36 % on avg.), while shares of Hungarians, people from former Yugoslavia and the rest of the EU are increasing (+2,7 % on avg.).

New arrivals are mostly young. The dominant age bracket is between 20 and 34 years, making up between 50 % (from former Yugoslavia) and 66,3 % (from Germany). This contrasts with the resident population, who are mostly older than 35 years. Since 2008, the share of new immigrants between 20 and 34 has risen further, especially among native Germans, Poles and Hungarians. By contrast, newcomers from Rumania, Hungary and former Yugoslavia have seen an increase of +35 year-olds, implying family reunifications.

All-an-all, men are more mobile than women, as the shares of female newcomers are usually lower than usual (between 45,1 % and 49,55 %).

Where are the new immigrants´ first places of residence? Urban quarters near Vienna´s outer ring road, the "Gürtel" receive the biggest total numbers of newcomers. These are populous areas, with a disproportionally high share of people not native to Austria and high shares of small and/or low-standard flats (e.g. without toilet facilities or toilets separated from bathrooms). There are comparatively high levels of fluctuation (measured as relocations per capita), while population growth tends to be low or average. There is overall little rela-tionship between growth and levels of fluctuation in the resident population.

There are distinct differences between different ethnic groups of newcomers regarding both location and prevailing kind habitation available at their first place of residence. A cluster analysis on the basis of the shares of newcomers from different countries of birth in each registration district of the city shows higher proportions of Germans and other (most likely western) EU-Member state in central locations characterised by buildings from before WW II, or as the case may be, quarters with more premium quality flats in the north of Vienna, while other groups of newcomers are underrepresented there. Other pre-war neighbourhoods with lower quality flats (often near the Gürtel) show higher proportions of immigrants native to Poland. Scattered over the city, parts can be found that show high shares of subsidised housing (owned both by building societies and the Municipality of Vienna). New arrivals from forma Yugoslavia, but also from eastern and southern Europe are more prevalent here, while Germans and arrivals from other EU-Member states are underrepresented.

Vienna´s resident population also shows characteristic distribution patterns according to the shares of different ethnic groups as shown by a cluster analysis based on the composition of the resident population. The cluster-areas partly overlap with those of the newcomers: Native Viennese, and those born in Lower Austria or the Burgenland are overrepresented in the urban periphery or quarters with high proportions of single-home dwellings, respectively. In slight similarity to the patterns found among newcomers, Germans and Austrians from the western counties are found disproportionally often in central, areas with more large and high-standard flats. Natives of Poland, Romania or Former Yugoslavia are found in central locations too, especially near the Gürtel, or in Areas with higher proportions of small and low-standard flats. There are also areas with more balanced distribution of ethnic backgrounds: These are Vienna´s growing areas, with high proportions of newly-built and social housing (often the same thing) and/or flats owned by the municipality (colloquially known as "Gemeindebauten"). Only Austrians from the western counties and Germans are underrepresented here. All-in-all the Segregation indices of these two groups show a tendency to increase since 2008, while they have slightly decreased in the case of residents native to Poland or Former Yugoslavia.

To summarise: Growth and population fluctuation, but also the distribution of residents and newcomers over the city show relatively little correlation amongst each other. However, it is possible to spot some clear relationships between each of them and properties of an urban quarter in terms of building types, ownership and the quality of dwellings.

Urban quarters with more dwellings of lower living standard form points of attraction for people from less well-to-do countries, while quarters with better housing attract people from the richer (western) parts of Austria and Europe. The urban periphery, with its high share of spacious single-family homes that require significant funds, attracts a disproportionately high share of people born in Vienna, Lower Austria or the Burgenland. Much indicates that the prices of flats and the availability of living space are important, as well as the question whether they are privately owned or owned by building societies or the municipality. Finally the standard of living seems to be important for the duration of stay in a neighbourhood: High-quality areas attract newcomers from richer countries and they tend to stay longer there, as shown by the lower rates of fluctuation. Conversely, areas with lower-quality flats attract people from poorer countries and the higher fluctuation in these areas indicates that there are incentives to move away as soon as possible.

By contrast, social and publicly-owned housing is nearly always associated with lower fluctuation, higher population growth and a better, i.e. more bal-anced mix of ethnic heritages in the resident population. It should be pointed out however, that these neighbourhoods with their social housing in newly-built or historical dwellings are no focal points for new immigration. The data suggests that it is mid- to long-term residents of Vienna who move there, partly because of certain formal requirements, partly because of financial hurdles that need to be taken (in the case of building societies).

Parts of the city with lower or no growth at all exhibit tendencies for segrega-tion associated with the country of birth and economic status. But the social make-up of Vienna´s growing areas suggests that these neighbourhoods are attractive and affordable for members of a broad and culturally diverse middle class.