MAKING A PLACE IN THE METROPOLIS - LOCATIONAL ATTAINMENT IN CITIES AND SUBURBS

What accounts for the differences in the kinds of communities within t he metropolis in which members of different racial and ethnic groups l ive? Do socioeconomic advancement and acculturation provide greater in tegration with whites or access to more desirable locations for minori ty group members? Are these effects the same for Asians or Hispanics a s for blacks? Does suburbanization offer a step toward greater equalit y in the housing market, or do minorities find greater discrimination in the suburban housing market? Data from 1980 for five large metropol itan regions are used to estimate ''locational-attainment models,'' wh ich evaluate the effects of group members' individual attributes on tw o measures of the character of their living environment: the socioecon omic standing (median household income) and racial composition (propor tion non Hispanic white) of the census tract where they reside. Separa te models predict these outcomes for whites, blacks, Hispanics, and As ians. Net of the effects of individuals' background characteristics, w hites live in census tracts with the highest average proportion of whi te residents and the highest median household income. They are followe d by Asians and Hispanics, and-at substantially lower levels-blacks. L arge overall differences exist between city and suburban locations, ye t the gap between whites and others is consistently lower in the subur bs than in the cities of these five metropolitan regions.