Stefan Weick

Transition to Homeownership Among Immigrant Groups and Natives in West Germany, 1984–2008

The present article analyzes transitions to homeownership among immigrant groups and natives in West Germany over a 24-year period from 1984 to 2008. Using data from the German Socioeconomic Panel (GSOEP), we find that everything else being equal, Turks, ex-Yugoslavians, Southern Europeans, and Eastern Europeans do not display any differences in transitions into homeownership. Immigrants from wealthy Western countries and native Germans possess similar and higher transitions into homeownership. Factors exhibiting a positive effect on transitions to homeownership include years since migration, marital status, age, income, and education.

Materieller Lebensstandard und Armut im Alter

Nachdem Armut auch in Deutschland uber viele Jahrzehnte primar mit Alter und Ruhestand assoziiert wurde, galt sie in dieser Form – vor allem infolge der wohlfahrtsstaatlichen Entwicklung und einer langen Periode wirtschaftlicher Prosperitat – zuletzt als weitgehend uberwunden und hatte sich zunehmend auf andere gesellschaftliche Gruppen verlagert.

Subjective Well-Being After the Onset of the Need for Personal Assistance and Care

This paper analyses limitations in the quality of life of people in need of assistance or care. The focus of the analysis is the changes in satisfaction with life in general, health and household income before and after the onset of the need for assistance. There is a high risk of experiencing episodes of dependency on others in very old age. Those affected are mostly restricted in their mobility and, depending on the degree of their need for assistance, show low satisfaction levels. No evidence is found that people adapt to this unfavourable situation over time: neither life satisfaction nor health satisfaction returns to the former level. Health satisfaction begins to be affected at lower degrees of dependency than life satisfaction. On the other hand, the evaluation of the economic domain – indicated by satisfaction with household income – is not greatly affected by the need for personal assistance and care. The analysis is based on 27 waves of the German Socio Economic Panel Study.