Can the periphery be the Riviera?

Western-European older migrants in rural areas

Abstract

The number of Western European settlers in Hungary is steadily increasing, with Germans in particular choosing rural, often peripheral settlements as their new home. These older adults from abroad are lifestyle migrants, i.e. relatively affluent people living in a country with strong economic indicators who change country and place of residence in search of a new, desirable lifestyle because they feel they cannot achieve it in their own country. The migration process of recent years has been fueled by perceived or feared crises, above all the crisis of livelihood; the disruption of economic conditions and the fear of an economic downturn have led many to move to the Hungarian countryside, where they have the prospect of a cheaper life. In other words, they follow the logic of geographical arbitrage, which allows them to maintain and improve their financial situation and social position, which had been shaken in their country of origin, by relocating, enjoying a relatively privileged position in the host societies.

There is a growing interest in rural sociological research in Hungary towards the gentrification of the countryside, a characteristic, though not exclusive process of rural restructuring. Using the example of a small peripheral village, this paper explores the question of whether the arrival of older adults from Western Europe can trigger the gentrification of a settlement. Our results show that although the new residents can be considered as potential gentrifiers due to their relatively privileged position, the conditions for gentrification of the local society are not (yet) fulfilled. Among the Germans, there is no community of values and interests beyond the creation of a framework for individual life, no vision of the transformation of locality, and so only micro-communities are created (among Germans and Hungarians), living side by side in the village, maintaining sparse relations with each other. The structural processes that determine the image of localism today – continuous depopulation, social and spatial marginalization – do not lead to the displacement of lower-income local groups. German newcomers are replacing those who have already left or are able to achieve their mobility by selling their property.