Spatial segregation and housing conditions of foreign-born population in Valladolid. Residential patterns of immigration in a Southern European medium-size city

Abstract

The arrival of foreigners during the expansive period of international immigration was followed by a reconfiguration of the residential systems in Southern European countries. Since that moment, social scientists have paid much attention to the study of residential segregation. Largest urban areas have been widely studied, but there is a lack of knowledge in medium-size cities. In Valladolid, a Spanish inland municipality with 300.000 residents, foreign-born population show low and decreasing segregation levels. Their housing conditions are worse compared to the local population, but they do not hold high levels of precarious conditions. These results are similar to the ones obtained by other case studies in large urban areas of the Mediterranean. However, Moroccans are the only immigrants who have increased their spatial segregation in our research.