Published Projects
Evaluation of Railroad Noise – The Proximity to Railroads and Its Effect on House Price
Abstract: In 2017, the German federal government passed the Railroad Noise Protection Act to reduce the noise emitted by freight trains. This paper evaluates the effects of this law on house prices by using regional variation comparing affected homes close to train tracks and homes in greater distance before and after the introduction of the national strategy. The difference-in-difference framework suggests an increase in house prices by 0.5% to 2.5% for houses close to the tracks considering different time periods for the act being passed and its complete implementation. A heterogeneity analysis reveals increasing effects with reduced distance to tracks. It also shows that those with the highest general noise burden gain the most from the Railroad Noise Protection Act.
[Version October 2022]
Published as Ruhr Economic Paper #981.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4419/96973146
Housing Prices, Airport Noise and an Unforeseeable Event of Silence
(Joint work with P. Breidenbach)
Abstract: To evaluate the causal impact of noise exposure on housing prices, we exploit a sudden and massive reduction in flight traffic that occurred with the onset of the Covid-19 measures in Germany. Comparing locations differently exposed to pre-pandemic noise with a difference-in-difference approach, we detect a 2.3% increase in prices for apartments that experienced a noise reduction. Disentangling temporal dynamics, we find a peak effect in mid-2021 (up to 6%), which does not yet allow a statement on whether effects remain persistently. In contrast to most evaluations showing that the erection of a disamenity affects prices negatively, we show that lifting the burden enables neighborhoods to catch up again immediately. The immediate catch-up contradicts a stickiness of housing prices regarding (temporal) local factors. The temporal pattern shows a clear peak of the effects during the pandemic, which potentially hints at information asymmetries since buyers may not know the non-pandemic noise level during the pandemic.
[Version April 2023]
Published as Ruhr Economic Paper #1020.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4419/96973186
The Impact of COVID-19 on Real Estate Markets in Germany
(Joint work with E. Beze)
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted established urban patterns. The literature on the impact of the pandemic on real estate markets in the US has shown a significant increase in the demand for suburban housing, resulting in a considerable increase in suburban prices compared to those in the city center (termed the “donut effect”). However, the German housing market did not experience such drastic changes. To examine price and rent adjustments during the pandemic, we analyze detailed housing data and find little evidence supporting the donut effect seen in the US. Apartment rents increase in suburban areas, while house prices do not change significantly. Examining the role of amenities, we find no explanation for price and rent differences between the central business district (CBD) and suburbs. The differences between the two markets may be attributed to cultural and structural distinctions. Our analysis, which includes data on population patterns and migration behavior, reveals that residents in Germany exhibit a slower-moving trend. Our findings remain robust across different settings and subsets of cities.
[Version January 2024]
Published as SSRN Paper.
URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4700238
Heterogeneous Pass-through over Time and Space – The Case of Germany’s Fuel Discount
(Joint work with M. Frondel and C. Vance)
Abstract: Exploiting exogenous variation in retail fuel prices from a temporary fuel tax discount in Germany, we estimate how the pass-through of the discount varies over space and time. We draw on daily gasoline prices of virtually all gas stations in Germany and neighboring France, with France serving as a control, and estimate an event study model covering the full period of the discount from June to August 2022. We find average pass-through rates on the order of 87% for diesel and 71% for petrol, but with substantially lower rates in high-income regions and in regions with a low degree of competition. More strikingly, our results suggest pronounced heterogeneity over time: The magnitude of the pass-through rate dissipates sharply over the three months in which the discount was in effect, dropping to 50% by the final month, a pattern consistent with retailer responses to short-term changes in consumer attention. Taken together, our results indicate that average pass-through estimates may obscure a high degree of spatial and temporal heterogeneity that bears upon the assessment of competition and distributional effects: While our estimation of the budgetary costs of the discount confirms the government’s a priori estimate of €3.1 billion, we find that about 61% of the discount’s financial relief accrues to households with above-median incomes.
[Version March 2024]
Published as SSRN Paper.
URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4785571
Working projects
Other Projects
Constructing an Urban Amenity Indicator
Value of Parks and Protecte Areas using Hedonic Methods
