Migration, (il)legal status and housing precarity: Difficulties and coping strategies

Using evidence from participant observation and qualitative interviews with
54 sub-Saharan African (SSA) migrants—“economic migrants,” refugees
(people with any international protection status), (refused) asylum-seekers
and irregular migrants—this article identifies the housing barriers and the
10resources individuals use to cope with housing difficulties in the mid-sized
city of Bergamo, Italy. The analysis highlights that while legal status is
significant in accessing quality and stable housing, there is no direct relation-
ship between legal status and housing access. All migrant groups faced
various challenges to housing access leading to uncertain and precarious
15housing situations contributing to prolonged housing precarity, and the
production of multiple and various coping mechanisms. The findings have
implications for policy, housing and migration scholarship.