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Price and Prejudice: Housing Rents Reveal Racial Animus

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  • Thoenig, Mathias
  • Brülhart, Marius
  • Klinke, Gian-Paolo
  • Marcucci, Andrea
  • Rohner, Dominic

Abstract

We study market rents in the neighborhood of asylum seeker hosting centers. Our empirical setting exploits the quasi-random opening of centers and spatial allocation of asylum seekers in Switzerland. Rents within 0.7km of an active center are found on average to be 3.8% lower than rents in the control group. The price drop is more pronounced when centers host a higher share of asylum seekers from Sub-Saharan countries. In contrast, neither the religious affiliation of asylum seekers nor their inferred crime propensity affect prices significantly. Our findings are consistent with racial animus as the dominant driver of observed market outcomes

Suggested Citation

  • Thoenig, Mathias & Brülhart, Marius & Klinke, Gian-Paolo & Marcucci, Andrea & Rohner, Dominic, 2023. "Price and Prejudice: Housing Rents Reveal Racial Animus," CEPR Discussion Papers 18050, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:18050
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • R31 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Housing Supply and Markets

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