What is multi-local life, and what does it imply for Helsinki and the Helsinki Region in future? Is the coronavirus pandemic causing a flight from cities, as some commentators have suggested?

In the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, 2019 turned out to be a record year in housing production. A total of 16,056 dwellings were completed in the three big cities of the metro area – Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa – a number clearly exceeding any previous annual output.

The Helsinki City Strategy stresses the importance of reducing population differentiation at the neighbourhood level. This framing is consistent with most discussions on urban segregation, concerned largely with the static distribution of different population groups in residential space. However, if one of the goals in preventing segregation is to promote integration, and ensure equity of access and outcome between population groups, then only considering where people live is far too limited an approach.

The opening of the Helsinki’s western metro line finally took place in November 2017, over a year after the latest planned opening date. Despite this, the new metro line has already influenced the housing market around its stations for several years.

In Finland and in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, immigrants live in owner-occupied housing far less frequently than the native population. A corresponding mismatch can also be seen in many other countries, particularly with regard to immigrants who have been in the country for a short period of time.

The Helsinki Metropolitan Area hosts growing numbers of foreign professionals who are vital for the competitiveness of the city region. Besides working, the migrants also establish their everyday lives within the built environment of the city. What are their housing experiences, and does the local offer of housing support their settling into the city region?

Helsinki is one of the fastest growing metropolises in Europe. New areas for living and business are rising especially in areas formerly occupied by logistical and industrial functions.