Journal of Economic Literature
ISSN 0022-0515 (Print) | ISSN 2328-8175 (Online)
Housing and Inequality
Journal of Economic Literature
(pp. 916–63)
Abstract
We approach the literature on housing and inequality from two angles. One is the impact of unequal endowments on housing. The second is the "memberships" inequality associated with neighborhoods, namely, households' location in a geographic and social context. We elaborate on these two angles of inequality and focus on three distinctive features of housing: consumption, capital, and location. For owner-occupants, capital and consumption are bundled together in a single good. For both renters and owner-occupants, housing consumption inequality, access to good neighborhoods, and housing wealth follow from unequal endowments. Housing can propagate inequality by enabling owner-occupants to use it as collateral for other investments or to secure higher returns to human capital investments through the better schools in better neighborhoods. We use this approach to analyze key aspects of housing and inequality, paying special attention to the impacts of racial discrimination and segregation.Citation
Ioannides, Yannis M., and L. Rachel Ngai. 2025. "Housing and Inequality." Journal of Economic Literature 63 (3): 916–63. DOI: 10.1257/jel.20251659Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D63 Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
- R21 Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Housing Demand
- R23 Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population; Neighborhood Characteristics
- R31 Housing Supply and Markets