Land Use Restrictions as Barriers to Entry

The OECD Competition Committee debated competitive effects of land use restrictions in February 2008. Land use restrictions often serve valuable social purposes. The benefits of particular policies for land use must be balanced against the costs, though. The social harms that can arise when land use restrictions create “entry barriers” are rarely considered explicitly. Land use restrictions can raise the price and reduce supply of a broad range of real estate and, by preventing new and innovative stores from opening, reduce shopping options available to consumers. More careful integration of policy on land use restrictions with competition policy could benefit consumers and many entrepreneurs and reduce the likelihood that public or private restrictions will lead to supply scarcity. This roundtable examines competition problems affecting commercial construction and use permits, geographic density tests, adverse impact tests, access condition to rights of ay and private restrictions on land use. Steps are identified for improving public policies towards land use restrictions.