Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP18092
Authors: David Miles; James Sefton
Abstract: We analyse how greater ability for some to work from home might affect relative and absolute house prices and generate impacts on welfare for different households with unequal options about flexible work. We find that a plausible calibration for thescale of greater ability of many people to work from home creates substantial long run impacts on house values, population density and welfare. The resulting pattern of house prices and location rarely generates any losers though the benefits are far from equallydistributed. The implications for residential location and density are often not what one might expect.
Keywords: working from home; commuting; house prices
JEL Codes: R21; N90; R30; R31
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Increased work-from-home opportunities (J29) | significant long-run impacts on house values (R20) |
| Increased work-from-home opportunities (J29) | significant long-run impacts on population density (J11) |
| Increased work-from-home opportunities (J29) | significant long-run impacts on welfare (D69) |
| Decreased commuting costs (R48) | decrease in housing prices in urban centers relative to suburban areas (R31) |
| Increased work-from-home opportunities (J29) | increased welfare for higher-paid workers (J38) |
| Increased work-from-home opportunities (J29) | negligible gains or losses in welfare for lower-paid workers (D69) |