This article examines some of the links between the phenomena of urban migration and squatter settlements in the Third World city. This will be done by demonstrating that both are outcomes of fundamental social and political forces that have operated on these societies. Migration and squatting are placed in a context of the historical processes that led to the uneven development of Malaysia1. The article offers some explanation for the origin of the inequalities observed in spatial structures — in this case urban housing—by focusing on one of the contributory factors, namely migration.