21: Does a Nearby Murder Affect Housing Prices and Rents? The Case of Sydney

Author(s):

Anastasia Klimova, Economics Discipline Group, UTS Business School, University of Technology, Sydney
Adrian D. Lee, Finance Discipline Group, UTS Business School, University of Technology, Sydney

Date of publication: April 2014
 

Working paper number: 21

Abstract:

We measure the impact of murders on prices and rents of homes in Sydney. We find that housing prices fall by 3.9% for homes within 0.2 miles of the murder, in the year following the murder, and weaker results in the second year after a murder. We do not find any effects of murders on rents. Higher media coverage and being located closer to the murder (within 0.1 mile) have no additional effect on prices. Taken together, our findings suggest that proximity to a murder affects nearby property prices, particularly in the first year after the incident.

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