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Investments in housing influence migration and landscape construction, making them a key component of human-environment interactions. However, the strategic decision-making that builds residential landscapes is an underdeveloped area of research in evolutionary approaches to human behaviour. Our contribution to this literature is a theoretical model and an empirical test of this model using data from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. We develop a model of strategic housing decisions using stochastic dynamic programming (SDP) to explore the trade-offs between building, moving and saving over time, finding different trade-offs depending on optimization scenarios and housing costs. Household strategies are then estimated using data on 825 households that settled in the Ger districts of Ulaanbaatar between 1942 and 2020. The Ger districts are areas of self-built housing that feature both mobile dwellings (gers) and immobile houses (bashins). Using approximate Bayesian computation (ABC), we find the parameters of our dynamic programming model that best fit the empirical data. The model is able to capture the time horizon of housing changes and their bi-directionality, showing that moving from a fixed to mobile dwelling can also be an optimal strategy. However, the model underpredicts household persistence in dwelling types. We discuss deviations from model predictions and identify a more detailed exploration of risk and population mixes of strategies as key steps for future research., Competing Interests: We declare we have no competing interests., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

Background and Aims: Active aging is the process through which people strive to maintain wellbeing when growing old. Addressing the lack of research on active aging in the context of housing, the aim was to describe active aging among people aged 55 and older considering relocation and investigate whether perceived housing moderates the relationship between functional limitations and active aging., Methods: We utilized cross-sectional data from a sub-sample (N = 820; mean age = 69.7; 54% women) of the Prospective RELOC-AGE. Functional limitations were reported using 10 dichotomous questions. Active aging was assessed with the University of Jyvaskyla Active Aging Scale (UJACAS; 17 items, self-rated for four perspectives). Perceived housing was self-rated with four usability questions and meaning of home (MOH; 28 items). Cross-sectional associations and interactions were analysed using linear regression models, adjusting for gender and educational level., Results: Each functional limitation decreased the active aging score by almost five points (p < 0.001). Usability did not moderate that relationship while MOH significantly attenuated the association between functional limitations and active aging (p = 0.039). Those with high MOH had two points less decrease in active aging score compared to those with low MOH., Discussion and Conclusions: Having a home with more personal meaning attached to it seems to provide more ability and opportunity for meaningful activities, thus supporting active aging despite functional limitations. This sheds new light on the known association between MOH and different aspects of wellbeing in old age and has relevance for theory development, housing policies and housing counselling targeting younger older adults., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

In the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea, public fear or social scaring of urban living was observed, which caused people to change their daily routines. This study examines how the COVID-19 pandemic affected residential choice and perceptions of urban living. We analyzed self-reported survey data collected from 2000 participants in Seoul, Daegu, and Kyeongbuk in South Korea between 3-6 August 2020, targeting the relatively controlled period after the first COVID-19 outbreak. Logistic regression models were used to examine concerns of urban living and residence relocation consideration. Those who were aged 30 or older, regularly commuting, not feeling healthy, with a household size of two, and living in a low-rise condominium were more likely to be concerned with urban living. Those who were aged 40 or older and living in a townhouse or a single-detached house were more likely to consider moving to a less dense area. People perceived that their daily routine changed substantially after the pandemic. Certain participant groups showed concerns of urban living and relocation consideration, suggesting housing policy implications.