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The optimal tax treatment of housing capital in the neoclassical growth model

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  • Eerola, Essi
  • Määttänen, Niku

Abstract

In a dynamic setting, housing is both an asset and a consumption good.But should it be taxed like other forms of consumption or like other forms of saving?We consider the optimal taxation of the imputed rent from owner housing within a version of the neoclassical growth model.We find that the optimal tax rate on the imputed rent is quite sensitive to the constraints imposed on the other available tax rates.In general, it is not optimal to tax the imputed rent at the same rate as the business capital income.

Suggested Citation

  • Eerola, Essi & Määttänen, Niku, 2005. "The optimal tax treatment of housing capital in the neoclassical growth model," Bank of Finland Research Discussion Papers 10/2005, Bank of Finland.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:bofrdp:rdp2005_010
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    Cited by:

    1. Spencer Bastani & Sebastian Koehne, 2022. "How Should Consumption Be Taxed?," CESifo Working Paper Series 10038, CESifo.
    2. Nakajima, Makoto, 2020. "Capital income taxation with housing," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    3. Odran Bonnet & Guillaume Chapelle & Alain Trannoy & Etienne Wasmer, 2019. "Secular Trends in Wealth and Heterogeneous Capital: Land is Back... and Should Be Taxed," Sciences Po publications 2019-14, Sciences Po.
    4. Eerola Essi & Määttänen Niku, 2006. "On the Political Economy of Housing's Tax Status," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 6(2), pages 1-32, September.
    5. Hamza Polattimur, 2013. "Housing, Collateral Constraints, and Fiscal Policy," Ekonomi-tek - International Economics Journal, Turkish Economic Association, vol. 2(2), pages 53-82, May.
    6. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/3bhpicpe2q8a090eu5p3dvakb6 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Gobbi, Paula Eugenia & Chapelle, Guillaume & Domènech Arumí, Gerard, 2023. "Housing, Neighborhoods and Inequality," CEPR Discussion Papers 17969, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Schünemann, Johannes & Trimborn, Timo, 2023. "Boosting taxes for boasting about houses? Status concerns in the housing market," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 120-143.
    9. Strulik, Holger & Trimborn, Timo, 2014. "Natural disasters and macroeconomic performance: The role of residential investment," University of Göttingen Working Papers in Economics 194 [rev.], University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
    10. Makoto Nakajima, 2010. "Optimal capital income taxation with housing," Working Papers 10-11, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    11. Holger Strulik & Timo Trimborn, 2019. "Natural Disasters and Macroeconomic Performance," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 72(4), pages 1069-1098, April.
    12. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/1eob9f9aas9q18hfjsiqhggvi2 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Roberto Brunetti & Carl Gaigné & Fabien Moizeau, 2023. "Credit Market Imperfections, Urban Land Rents and the Henry George Theorem," Revue économique, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 74(5), pages 681-703.
    14. Odran Bonnet & Guillaume Flamerie de La Chapelle & Alain Trannoy & Etienne Wasmer, 2019. "Secular Trends in Wealth and Heterogeneous Capital: Land is Back... and Should Be Taxed," Working Papers hal-03570837, HAL.
    15. Li, Shiyu & Lin, Shuanglin, 2023. "Housing property tax, economic growth, and intergenerational welfare: The case of China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 233-251.
    16. Bonnet, Odran & Chapelle, Guillaume & Trannoy, Alain & Wasmer, Etienne, 2021. "Land is back, it should be taxed, it can be taxed," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    17. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/56k383m9o9kpb1g6f8rvv74ok is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Odran Bonnet & Guillaume Flamerie de la Chapelle & Alain Trannoy & Etienne Wasmer, 2019. "Secular trends in Wealth and Heterogeneous Capital: Land is back...and should be taxed," SciencePo Working papers hal-03541411, HAL.
    19. Michael Ben-Gad, 2017. "The Optimal Taxation Of Asset Income When Government Consumption Is Endogenous: Theory, Estimation And Welfare," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 55(4), pages 1689-1711, October.
    20. Odran Bonnet, 2018. "Individual housing choices and aggregate housing prices: discrete choice models revisited with matching models," Sciences Po publications info:hdl:2441/3bhpicpe2q8, Sciences Po.
    21. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/1eob9f9aas9q18hfjsiqhggvi2 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Korkeamäki, Ossi, 2011. "The Finnish payroll tax cut experiment revisited," Working Papers 22, VATT Institute for Economic Research.
    23. Michael Ben-Gad, 2017. "The Optimal Taxation Of Asset Income When Government Consumption Is Endogenous: Theory, Estimation And Welfare," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 55(4), pages 1689-1711, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    housing; capital taxation; optimal taxation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth

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