“Sprawl and Blight”, J. Brueckner and R. Helsley (2009)

It is well known that much of the attractiveness of the suburbs is the result of unpriced externalities (for instance, the “open space” amenity, unpriced government infrastructure, congestion, etc.). Brueckner and Helsley point out that precisely the same externalities can explain urban blight, or the prevalence of suboptimal reinvestment in urban housing when a city grows.

http://www.economics.uci.edu/docs/2009-10/brueckner-3.pdf

Advertisement