OECD Economics Department Working Papers

ISSN :
1815-1973 (en ligne)
DOI :
10.1787/18151973
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Working papers from the Economics Department of the OECD that cover the full range of the Department’s work including the economic situation, policy analysis and projections; fiscal policy, public expenditure and taxation; and structural issues including ageing, growth and productivity, migration, environment, human capital, housing, trade and investment, labour markets, regulatory reform, competition, health, and other issues.
 

Real House Prices in OECD Countries

The Role of Demand Shocks and Structural and Policy Factors You or your institution have access to this content

Auteur(s):
Dan Andrews1
Author Affiliations
  • 1: OCDE, France

Date de publication
13 déc 2010
Bibliographic information
N°:
831
Pages
35
DOI
10.1787/5km33bqzhbzr-en

Cacher / Voir l'abstract

This paper analyses the factors influencing the level and volatility of real house prices in a panel of OECD countries over the period 1980-2005. Results suggest that real house prices tend to rise proportionally with real household incomes, while declines in structural unemployment and real interest rates are associated with higher real house prices. The process of mortgage market deregulation has coincided with a noticeable increase in real house prices in OECD countries, while high rates of leverage are found to amplify house price volatility. Estimates suggest that tax reliefs on mortgage debt financing costs tend to be capitalised into real house prices and may also amplify price volatility, reflecting the tendency for such policies to encourage leverage. While higher transaction costs are associated with lower house price volatility, this effect is modest compared to the impact of banking supervision. Indeed, prudential banking supervision and policies designed to contain the excessive build-up of leverage are shown to significantly reduce the extent of house price volatility, underscoring the importance of ongoing efforts to reform prudential frameworks in OECD countries.
Mots-clés:
mortgage markets, financial regulation, house prices, taxation, housing market
Classification JEL:
  • G21: Financial Economics / Financial Institutions and Services / Banks; Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
  • H24: Public Economics / Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue / Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
  • R21: Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics / Household Analysis / Housing Demand
  • R31: Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics / Real Estate Markets, Production Analysis, and Firm Location / Housing Supply and Markets