Bordering mobilities: the case of Russian trans-border second-home ownership in Finland

Abstract

Trans-border second-home ownership is a growing mobility trend in different parts of the world. This paper employs both a mobilities and border perspective in considering trans-border second-home ownership through the example of Russian second-home mobility in Finland. The analysis highlights the importance of borders and bordering in contemporary trans-border mobilities—an importance that the new paradigm has yet to fully recognize and address. The argument in the paper is constructed through three empirical perspectives: Russian second-home owners, Finnish locals and second-home owners, and parliamentary discussions. The results show that the border and the bordering process are present in multiple ways in Russian trans-border second-home mobilities. The border is a regulator of mobility; it is an attraction; it is an invisible barrier in everyday life; and it is a means of differentiation between “us” and “them.”