IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/wiw/wiwrsa/ersa12p472.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Do Homeowners Benefit the Neighborhood? Evidence from Semiparametric Hedonic Regressions

Author

Listed:
  • Tuukka Saarimaa
  • Mika Kortelainen

Abstract

Homeownership is heavily subsidized in many countries mainly through the tax code. The adverse effects of lenient tax treatment of owner-occupied housing on economic efficiency and growth are well documented in the economics literature. The main argument in favor of subsidizing owner-occupied housing is that it creates positive externalities or social benefits that offset these adverse effects. This paper tests whether homeowners create positive externalities to their immediate neighborhood that capitalize into house prices. Using semiparametric hedonic regressions with instrumental variables we find no evidence of positive externalities from neighborhood homeownership rate. This result is robust to relaxing the identification assumptions of our instrument using the set identification method proposed by Nevo and Rosen (2012, Review of Economics and Statistics, forthcoming). Our results suggest that the adverse efficiency effects of lenient tax treatment of owner-occupied housing are not offset by positive externalities. Keywords: Homeownership, neighborhood effects, partial linear model, kernel regression, set identification JEL codes: D62, R21, R28

Suggested Citation

  • Tuukka Saarimaa & Mika Kortelainen, 2012. "Do Homeowners Benefit the Neighborhood? Evidence from Semiparametric Hedonic Regressions," ERSA conference papers ersa12p472, European Regional Science Association.
    • Handle: RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa12p472
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www-sre.wu.ac.at/ersa/ersaconfs/ersa12/e120821aFinal00474.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Daniel P. McMillen, 2010. "Issues In Spatial Data Analysis," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(1), pages 119-141, February.
    2. Sandra E. Black, 1999. "Do Better Schools Matter? Parental Valuation of Elementary Education," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 114(2), pages 577-599.
    3. Gervais, Martin, 2002. "Housing taxation and capital accumulation," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(7), pages 1461-1489, October.
    4. Daniel P. McMillen & Christian L. Redfearn, 2010. "Estimation And Hypothesis Testing For Nonparametric Hedonic House Price Functions," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(3), pages 712-733, August.
    5. Robinson, Peter M, 1988. "Root- N-Consistent Semiparametric Regression," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 56(4), pages 931-954, July.
    6. Patrick Bayer & Fernando Ferreira & Robert McMillan, 2007. "A Unified Framework for Measuring Preferences for Schools and Neighborhoods," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 115(4), pages 588-638, August.
    7. Esteban Rossi-Hansberg & Pierre-Daniel Sarte & Raymond Owens, 2010. "Housing Externalities," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 118(3), pages 485-535, June.
    8. Hilber, Christian A.L., 2010. "New housing supply and the dilution of social capital," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 419-437, May.
    9. Aviv Nevo & Adam M. Rosen, 2012. "Identification With Imperfect Instruments," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 94(3), pages 659-671, August.
    10. Edward L. Glaeser & Jesse M. Shapiro, 2003. "The Benefits of the Home Mortgage Interest Deduction," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 17, pages 37-82, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Glaeser, Edward L. & Sacerdote, Bruce, 2000. "The Social Consequences of Housing," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 9(1-2), pages 1-23, March.
    12. Patrick Bajari & Matthew E. Kahn, 2005. "Estimating Housing Demand With an Application to Explaining Racial Segregation in Cities," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 23, pages 20-33, January.
    13. Li, Qi & Stengos, Thanasis, 1996. "Semiparametric estimation of partially linear panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 71(1-2), pages 389-397.
    14. Jeffrey R Kling & Jeffrey B Liebman & Lawrence F Katz, 2007. "Experimental Analysis of Neighborhood Effects," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 75(1), pages 83-119, January.
    15. Donald R. Haurin & Toby L. Parcel & R. Jean Haurin, 2002. "Does Homeownership Affect Child Outcomes?," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 30(4), pages 635-666.
    16. Skinner, Jonathan, 1996. "The dynamic efficiency cost of not taxing housing," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(3), pages 397-417, March.
    17. Vigdor, Jacob L., 2010. "Is urban decay bad? Is urban revitalization bad too?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 277-289, November.
    18. Karla Hoff & Arijit Sen, 2005. "Homeownership, Community Interactions, and Segregation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(4), pages 1167-1189, September.
    19. Oliver W. Lerbs & Christian A. Oberst, 2014. "Explaining the Spatial Variation in Homeownership Rates: Results for German Regions," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(5), pages 844-865, May.
    20. Engelhardt, Gary V. & Eriksen, Michael D. & Gale, William G. & Mills, Gregory B., 2010. "What are the social benefits of homeownership? Experimental evidence for low-income households," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 249-258, May.
    21. Rosen, Sherwin, 1974. "Hedonic Prices and Implicit Markets: Product Differentiation in Pure Competition," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 82(1), pages 34-55, Jan.-Feb..
    22. Andrea Baranzini & José Ramirez & Caroline Schaerer & Philippe Thalmann (ed.), 2008. "Hedonic Methods in Housing Markets," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-0-387-76815-1, September.
    23. DiPasquale, Denise & Glaeser, Edward L., 1999. "Incentives and Social Capital: Are Homeowners Better Citizens?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 354-384, March.
    24. Saarimaa, Tuukka, 2008. "Imputed Rental Income, Taxation and Income Distribution in Finland," Discussion Papers 446, VATT Institute for Economic Research.
    25. Tuukka Saarimaa, 2011. "Imputed Rental Income, Taxation and Income Distribution in Finland," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 48(8), pages 1695-1714, June.
    26. Boehm, Thomas P. & Schlottmann, Alan M., 1999. "Does Home Ownership by Parents Have an Economic Impact on Their Children?," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 8(3), pages 217-232, September.
    27. Linneman, Peter, 1985. "An economic analysis of the homeownership decision," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 230-246, March.
    28. Berkovec, James & Fullerton, Don, 1992. "A General Equilibrium Model of Housing, Taxes, and Portfolio Choice," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(2), pages 390-429, April.
    29. Patrick Bayer & Robert McMillan, 2008. "Distinguishing Racial Preferences in the Housing Market: Theory and Evidence," Springer Books, in: Andrea Baranzini & José Ramirez & Caroline Schaerer & Philippe Thalmann (ed.), Hedonic Methods in Housing Markets, chapter 10, pages 225-244, Springer.
    30. David Barker & Eric Miller, 2009. "Homeownership and Child Welfare," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 37(2), pages 279-303, June.
    31. Brasington, David M., 2002. "Edge versus center: finding common ground in the capitalization debate," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(3), pages 524-541, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Saarimaa, Tuukka & Kortelainen, Mika, 2012. "Do homeowners benefit urban neighborhoods? Evidence from housing prices," Working Papers 36, VATT Institute for Economic Research.
    2. John Gibson & Bonggeun Kim, 2018. "Home Ownership and Political Participation: Longitudinal Evidence Suggests There is No Causal Relationship," Working Papers in Economics 18/02, University of Waikato.
    3. Hans R. A. Koster & Jos N. van Ommeren & Piet Rietveld, 2016. "Historic amenities, income and sorting of households," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 16(1), pages 203-236.
    4. Christian A. L. Hilber, 2017. "The Economic Implications of House Price Capitalization: A Synthesis," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 45(2), pages 301-339, April.
    5. Aarland, Kristin & Santiago, Anna Maria & Galster, George C. & Nordvik, Viggo, 2021. "Childhood Housing Tenure and Young Adult Educational Outcomes: Evidence from Sibling Comparisons in Norway," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    6. Li, Qiang, 2014. "Ethnic diversity and neighborhood house prices," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 21-38.
    7. Nguyen-Hoang, Phuong & Yinger, John, 2011. "The capitalization of school quality into house values: A review," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 30-48, March.
    8. Olsen, Edgar O. & Zabel, Jeffrey E., 2015. "US Housing Policy," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 887-986, Elsevier.
    9. Coulson, N. Edward & Li, Herman, 2013. "Measuring the external benefits of homeownership," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 57-67.
    10. Hilber, Christian A. L., 2011. "The economics implications of house price capitalization a survey of an emerging literature," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 58596, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    11. Hilber, Christian A.L., 2010. "New housing supply and the dilution of social capital," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 419-437, May.
    12. Christian A. L. Hilber & Tracy M. Turner, 2014. "The Mortgage Interest Deduction and its Impact on Homeownership Decisions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 96(4), pages 618-637, October.
    13. Andrea Baranzini & Caroline Schaerer & José V. Ramirez & Philippe Thalmann, 2008. "Do Foreigners Pay Higher Rents for the Same Quality of Housing in Geneva and Zurich?," Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics (SJES), Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics (SSES), vol. 144(IV), pages 703-730, December.
    14. John Yinger, 2009. "Hedonic Markets and Explicit Demands: Bid-Function Envelopes for Public Services, Neighborhood Amenities, and Commuting Costs," Center for Policy Research Working Papers 114, Center for Policy Research, Maxwell School, Syracuse University.
    15. Figari, Francesco & Paulus, Alari & Sutherland, Holly & Tsakloglou, Panos & Verbist, Gerlinde & Zantomio, Francesca, 2012. "Taxing Home Ownership: Distributional Effects of Including Net Imputed Rent in Taxable Income," IZA Discussion Papers 6493, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Gabriel M. Ahlfeldt & Wolfgang Maennig, 2019. "Gewinner und Verlierer von Stadtentwicklung: Ein Plädoyer für mehr Wohneigentum [Winners and losers of urban development: A plea for more home ownership]," Zeitschrift für Immobilienökonomie (German Journal of Real Estate Research), Springer;Gesellschaft für Immobilienwirtschaftliche Forschung e. V., vol. 5(1), pages 111-130, November.
    17. Hembre, Erik & Dantas, Raissa, 2022. "Tax incentives and housing decisions: Effects of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    18. Hans R. A. Koster & Jos Ommeren & Piet Rietveld, 2014. "Agglomeration Economies and Productivity: A Structural Estimation Approach Using Commercial Rents," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 81(321), pages 63-85, January.
    19. Yinger, John, 2015. "Hedonic markets and sorting equilibria: Bid-function envelopes for public services and neighborhood amenities," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 9-25.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    homeownership; neighborhood effects; partial linear model; kernel regression; set identification jel codes: d62; r21; r28;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D62 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Externalities
    • R21 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Housing Demand
    • R28 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Government Policy

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa12p472. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Gunther Maier (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.ersa.org .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.