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Homeownership and wealth accumulation for low-income households

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  • Wainer, Allison
  • Zabel, Jeffrey

Abstract

One of the justifications for federal involvement in the homeownership market is that it provides one of the few ways that low-income households can accumulate wealth. To date, the evidence on this claim is mixed due to the lack of a framework that allows for an evaluation of the causal impact of homeownership on wealth accumulation. We make up for this deficit by using the 1984–2013 waves of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics that allows us to use a household-level fixed effects estimator to focus on how wealth changes for households that shift their tenure status from renting to owning.

Suggested Citation

  • Wainer, Allison & Zabel, Jeffrey, 2020. "Homeownership and wealth accumulation for low-income households," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jhouse:v:47:y:2020:i:c:s105113771730205x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jhe.2019.03.002
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Zuchowski, David, 2023. "Pro-immigrant legislation and financial inclusion: The effects of sanctuary policies on the mortgage market," Ruhr Economic Papers 1053, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    3. Ashleigh Eldemire & Kimberly F Luchtenberg & Matthew M Wynter, 2022. "Does Homeownership Reduce Wealth Disparities for Low-Income and Minority Households?," The Review of Corporate Finance Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 11(3), pages 465-510.
    4. Cordes, Sarah A. & Schwartz, Amy Ellen & Elbel, Brian, 2023. "The effects of owner-occupied housing on student outcomes: Evidence from NYC," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    5. Daniel R. Carroll & Ross Cohen-Kristiansen, 2021. "Evaluating Homeownership as the Solution to Wealth Inequality," Economic Commentary, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, vol. 2021(22), pages 1-7, December.
    6. DiSalvo, Richard W. & Yu, Jia H., 2023. "Housing Affordability and School Quality in the United States," Journal of Housing Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    7. James Conklin & Kristopher Gerardi & Lauren Lambie-Hanson, 2022. "Can Everyone Tap Into the Housing Piggy Bank? Racial Disparities in Access to Home Equity," FRB Atlanta Working Paper 2022-17, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Homeownership status; Wealth accumulation; Low-income households;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • 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

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