Matching in Cities
In most countries, average wages tend to be higher in larger cities. In this paper, we focus on the role played by the matching of workers to firms in explaining [...]
Upzoning Chicago: Impacts of a Zoning Reform on Property Values and Housing Construction
What are the local-level impacts of zoning change? I study recent Chicago upzonings that increased allowed densities and reduced parking requirements in a manner exogenous of development plans and neighborhood [...]
Balancing the ‘Zoning Budget’
The politics of urban land use frustrate even the best intentions. A number of cities have made strong political commitments to increasing their local housing supply in the face of [...]
Balancing Priorities
The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) is the largest national affordable housing program in the U.S. By 2030, nearly half a million current LIHTC units, or nearly a quarter of [...]
Beyond the Double Veto: Land Use Plans as Preemptive Intergovernmental Compacts
The problem of local-government barriers to housing supply is finally enjoying its moment in the sun. For decades, the states did little to remedy this problem and arguably they made [...]
Meeting the Washington Region’s Future Housing Needs
Inaction on housing affordability challenges could ultimately undermine the region’s future economic growth and prosperity. Housing challenges like these can undermine worker productivity, make it harder for companies to attract [...]
Land Use Politics, Housing Costs, and Segregation in California Cities
California cities have some of the highest housing prices in the United States, but most of the state’s urbanized land is set aside for the least efficient uses. Using data [...]
The Sharing Economy and Housing Affordability: Evidence from Airbnb
We assess the impact of home-sharing on residential house prices and rents. Using a dataset of Airbnb listings from the entire United States and an instrumental variables estimation strategy, we [...]
Reducing and Preventing Homelessness: A Review of the Evidence and Charting a Research Agenda
Homelessness may be both a cause of and one of the more extreme outcomes of poverty. Governments at all levels have a variety of tools to combat homelessness, and these [...]
A Hidden Gift to Manufacturing
Many urban areas use non-cumulative zoning - zoning exclusive to one use (typically manufacturing) that prohibits other uses even if those uses are considered less noxious. Proponents of this zoning [...]