Editorial 15-3 International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis

The methodology uses hedonic regression and propensity score matching econometric techniques to analyse the price of single-family housing prices. [...]the study combines data about zoning changes at the parcel level with nearby housing sales transactions to study any potential externality effects because of rezoning induced by private parties. The seventh paper from South Africa examines the dynamic relationship between house prices and household income per capita in the lower- and low middle-income housing segments. The tenth paper from Australia examined the impact of the recently completed light rail on the level of residential property values.

ARBITRARY PROPERTY INTERFERENCE DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC AND BEYOND

To stymie COVID-19's spread, state and local governments imposed sweeping and burdensome lockdown measures that crushed American businesses and interfered with private property. Despite interfering with many Americans' property rights, state and local governments have consistently prevailed on pandemic-related regulatory takings claims in federal court. By forcing governments to pay for deprivations, the Takings Clause can thwart arbitrary interference with private property. However, the dispensation of regulatory takings claims arising out of pandemic-related regulations suggests that the Takings Clause may presently fail to adequately thwart arbitrary property interference in the partial regulatory takings context when the government claims that it is acting in the name of public health or safety. This Note expands on existing literature and details how substantive due process may presently only protect property from extremely arbitrary or despotic interference. This Note then argues that when substantive due process fails to thwart arbitrary interference, the regulatory takings doctrine will also fail to shield property when interference is substantial but is made pursuant to states' police powers. Because both doctrines may simultaneously fail to stymie arbitrariness, this Note contends that our Republic may constitutionally tolerate arbitrary property interference, a phenomenon highly detrimental to the rule of law. To incentivize legitimate and principled decision-making, and to protect private property from arbitrary interference, this Note urges states to pass laws that resemble the Texas Private Real Property Rights Preservation Act. These laws should, at a minimum: (1) require governments to compensate property owners for regulatory diminutions in property value that exceed a legislatively calibrated threshold;(2) excuse compensation when governments can satisfy a form of heightened scrutiny;and (3) permit governments to seek immunity from a law's requirements in exigent circumstances.

INCENTIVIZING FAIR HOUSING

Restrictive land use regulation has thwarted the upward mobility of many Americans, particularly Americans of color. Local restrictions imposed by affluent municipalities have limited access to safe neighborhoods, better housing, and good schools. Racism and economic self-interest have both played a role in exclusionary practices which have contributed to high housing costs that place a strain on the entire economy. Fair Housing Act litigation has been one weapon in the fight against these practices. Despite the Supreme Court's decision in Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., disparate impact litigation faces significant obstacles that limit its value as a tool to fight exclusionary zoning. First, because restrictive zoning ordinances have such widespread economic effect, it will generally be difficult to prove that their impact on members of protected classes is disparate. Second, municipalities are likely to have successful defenses against disparate impact claims arising from restrictive zoning-including the "business necessity" defense that zoning restrictions are necessary to minimize the tax burden on local residents. Third, litigation sets up an adversarial dynamic that leads municipalities to resist housing initiatives rather than embracing them. By contrast, incentives are better calculated to induce local cooperation in the development of fair housing. The Department of Housing and Urban Development made some use of incentives during the Obama Administration, but those efforts were not ideally designed to promote buy-in by recalcitrant municipalities and were abandoned during the Trump Administration. States, however, are well positioned to use the real property tax system to create substantial incentives for municipalities to abandon exclusionary practices. Using tax incentives rather than mandates would enlist municipal self-interest as a weapon against exclusion.

Spatial Variability of the ‘Airbnb Effect’: A Spatially Explicit Analysis of Airbnb’s Impact on Housing Prices in Sydney

Over the last decade, the emergence and significant growth of home-sharing platforms, such as Airbnb, has coincided with rising housing unaffordability in many global cities. It is in this context that we look to empirically assess the impact of Airbnb on housing prices in Sydney—one of the least affordable cities in the world. Employing a hedonic property valuation model, our results indicate that Airbnb’s overall effect is positive. A 1% increase in Airbnb density is associated with approximately a 2% increase in property sales price. However, recognizing that Airbnb’s effect is geographically uneven and given the fragmented nature of Sydney’s housing market, we also employ a GWR to account for the spatial variation in Airbnb activity. The findings confirm that Airbnb’s influence on housing prices is varied across the city. Sydney’s northern beaches and parts of western Sydney experience a statistically significant value uplift attributable to Airbnb activity. However, traditional tourist locations focused around Sydney’s CBD and the eastern suburbs experience insignificant or negative property price impacts. The results highlight the need for policymakers to consider local Airbnb and housing market contexts when deciding the appropriate level and design of Airbnb regulation.

Editorial

The methodology uses data from the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances and original survey data from mortgage lenders investigated the effects of student loan debt on first-time home buyers. The sixth paper from China examined to what extent, if any, is a homeowners association (HOA), which is related to a gated community capitalised into the level of housing prices. Housing market data was drawn from various real estate agencies with the findings confirming the age of the house, existence of central heating and/or parking had no significant effect on prices. The methodology used a double-layer analytic hierarchy process (AHP) approach to examine 15 geospatial factors where these factors were categorised into physical, social, economic, legal and environmental, forming the first layer, while its subcategory is the second layer.