Since literature that evaluates the impacts that Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has on surrounding property values is limited, this research contributes to this research by investigating if proximity to a BRT station has an effect, either positive or negative, on residential housing values. Further, it investigates if the nature and extent of this effect varied during different stages of implementation of the BRT system and different housing market conditions. Fluctuations in sale prices were mitigated based on a six month moving median. Four hedonic price models were then used to evaluate the influence of independent variables on the dependent variable, adjusted sales price. Results indicated that properties that were in an area between 0.4 and 0.8 mile (network distance) away from a BRT station, possessed about a $5,000 premium in sales price during the bust and initial recovery of the real estate market that occurred between 2009 and 2013. Additional results also indicated that in areas where the percentage of households without access to a vehicle increased, sales prices on residential properties also increased. This study did not employ the use of spatial models and concludes that such models should be used in future research to account for spatial autocorrelation. Further, this research suggests that additional geographic variables should be used to evaluate how residents value accessibility to other transportation systems when compared to BRT.

Statistics paint a picture of a wheat industry under severe pressure, with the number of hectares dedicated to wheat production that have decreased while imports notably increased since 1997. This has had a negative impact on the industry‘s global competitiveness. The direct and indirect linkages between wheat and wheat products, together with the benefits that the industry can bring to the economy in the form of heightened food security and employment opportunities, highlight the need for a competitive wheat industry in South Africa. Clearly, the underlying causes of the declining wheat production in South Africa need to be investigated and understood. The presence of strict wheat quality standards and the fact that one of the general characteristics of wheat is the defect of conversion (that is, yield declines as quality improves) help to explain why wheat production in South Africa has declined in recent years. This can also negatively affect prices received for produce because South African wheat prices are determined by the lowest import parity price and not by the specific quality of the wheat. The fact that market concentration has been observed in certain parts of the wheat industry in South Africa has raised concerns that this phenomenon could potentially have had a negative impact on the performance of the country‘s wheat production sector. Consequently, this study revolves around the following main questions: ―could the evident market concentration in the South African wheat industry influence the performance of the wheat production sector by prescribing certain quality standards which attract relatively low prices?‖, and if so, ―can the wheat quality standards and prices be held responsible for the decline in the industry‘s performance, and to what extent?‖ Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used in pursuit to answer these questions. The qualitative approach was used to describe the theoretical basis of performance, competitiveness and concentration. Three different quantitative approaches were employed to determine the current state of competitiveness (Relative Trade Advantage (RTA) method), the factors influencing it (hedonic price model) and the extent of such influence (dynamic linear model). From the RTA, it was clear that South Africa is the only country, compared to its trading partners, that has an uncompetitive unprocessed (production) wheat sector alongside a competitive semi-processed (flour) wheat sector. The hedonic price model supported the finding that the institutional environment of the wheat industry uses quality-related mechanisms such as the cultivar release criteria to influence the competitiveness of the wheat production sector. Four comparisons were developed to determine whether the strict qualities required for the release of new cultivars are justified. It was found that with all four of these comparisons, the strict prescribed wheat quality was not justified in terms of the quality and demand considerations. It was found that when prescribed wheat quality could be relaxed to accommodate market supply and demand, an estimated 12.8 percent increase in yields could have been realised equating to a loss of approximately R606 million in Net Farm Income (NFI) per annum. When increasing this percentage to 20 percent, it was seen that the effect on NFI per annum would be R920 million. This study therefore provides evidence as to why the performance of the wheat industry has been declining over the last two decades and also contributes to the development of a framework for policy and decision makers which will encourage more competition and a freer market in terms of quality standards. Further contributions of this study lies in the body of literature on competitive behaviour by showing how concentrated industries can use statutory bodies to manipulate markets for rent-seeking purposes. It further shows how these decisions impact on important aspects like the profits of role players in an industry. / PhD (Agriculture, Economics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Statistics paint a picture of a wheat industry under severe pressure, with the number of hectares dedicated to wheat production that have decreased while imports notably increased since 1997. This has had a negative impact on the industry‘s global competitiveness. The direct and indirect linkages between wheat and wheat products, together with the benefits that the industry can bring to the economy in the form of heightened food security and employment opportunities, highlight the need for a competitive wheat industry in South Africa. Clearly, the underlying causes of the declining wheat production in South Africa need to be investigated and understood. The presence of strict wheat quality standards and the fact that one of the general characteristics of wheat is the defect of conversion (that is, yield declines as quality improves) help to explain why wheat production in South Africa has declined in recent years. This can also negatively affect prices received for produce because South African wheat prices are determined by the lowest import parity price and not by the specific quality of the wheat. The fact that market concentration has been observed in certain parts of the wheat industry in South Africa has raised concerns that this phenomenon could potentially have had a negative impact on the performance of the country‘s wheat production sector. Consequently, this study revolves around the following main questions: ―could the evident market concentration in the South African wheat industry influence the performance of the wheat production sector by prescribing certain quality standards which attract relatively low prices?‖, and if so, ―can the wheat quality standards and prices be held responsible for the decline in the industry‘s performance, and to what extent?‖ Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used in pursuit to answer these questions. The qualitative approach was used to describe the theoretical basis of performance, competitiveness and concentration. Three different quantitative approaches were employed to determine the current state of competitiveness (Relative Trade Advantage (RTA) method), the factors influencing it (hedonic price model) and the extent of such influence (dynamic linear model). From the RTA, it was clear that South Africa is the only country, compared to its trading partners, that has an uncompetitive unprocessed (production) wheat sector alongside a competitive semi-processed (flour) wheat sector. The hedonic price model supported the finding that the institutional environment of the wheat industry uses quality-related mechanisms such as the cultivar release criteria to influence the competitiveness of the wheat production sector. Four comparisons were developed to determine whether the strict qualities required for the release of new cultivars are justified. It was found that with all four of these comparisons, the strict prescribed wheat quality was not justified in terms of the quality and demand considerations. It was found that when prescribed wheat quality could be relaxed to accommodate market supply and demand, an estimated 12.8 percent increase in yields could have been realised equating to a loss of approximately R606 million in Net Farm Income (NFI) per annum. When increasing this percentage to 20 percent, it was seen that the effect on NFI per annum would be R920 million. This study therefore provides evidence as to why the performance of the wheat industry has been declining over the last two decades and also contributes to the development of a framework for policy and decision makers which will encourage more competition and a freer market in terms of quality standards. Further contributions of this study lies in the body of literature on competitive behaviour by showing how concentrated industries can use statutory bodies to manipulate markets for rent-seeking purposes. It further shows how these decisions impact on important aspects like the profits of role players in an industry. / PhD (Agriculture, Economics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

This thesis concerns two topics related to policy effects of hillside and ridgeline development in Knox County, TN and attempts to quantify the values of different aspects of forest land in the area, particularly how the amenity values of forest land affect the prices of surrounding houses. The first essay conducts a cost-benefit analysis to determine the willingness of individual landowners for reforestation given explicitly stated costs and benefits of reforestation. A sequence of hedonic models was used to estimate differences in non-use values attributable to deforested and to forested areas, allowing the establishment of an overall price-distance relationship between the amenity values attributable to both areas and their proximities to housing locations. The results showed that the benefits from reforestation were greater than the opportunity costs of barren/grassland replaced and the houses with the greatest gains from reforestation were within one mile of the target site. Amenity value benefits for reforestation vary between sites but the sites with the greatest gains were those with the largest area, the lowest land cost, and the most houses within one mile. The second essay examined the effects of forest views on house prices and also the effect that the economy had on consumers’ value of those views. This study applied a sales hedonic model to two time periods with markedly different economic climates, the housing boom of 2002-2006 and the recession of 2008. Amenity value gains from forest views were then mapped out for the county for both periods to find those areas that had the highest gains in both periods. The results showed that while the views of forest land increase house values in both periods, the average marginal implicit price gain decreased over 13 percent from the boom period to the recession. Maps of the value gains highlighted the south-western, eastern and northern parts of the county, which contain high income suburban communities, with consistent value gains in excess of $70 per acre.

Florida is the “Fishing Capital of the World”. With 3.1 million recreational anglers and total recreational fishing-related expenditures of $5 billion in 2011, Florida ranked first in the nation. Given the large benefits of recreational fishing in Florida, assessing the preferences of anglers is critical for sustaining the substantial benefits obtained from recreational fishing in Florida. The objective of this study is to estimate the value of fishing attributes using data on recreational fishing services offered by guides and outfitters. Hedonic price models are applied to estimate the implicit prices of fishing trip attributes and features. The estimated total economic impacts suggest that recreational fishing activities have added $151.19 million value to the economy of Florida and generated $69.73 million in total output. The results can be used by state and national policymakers for future policy design and management of this unique ecosystem service to ensure a sustainable economy.

This paper is studying an impact of price of noise on a market price of dwelling. I focus on a difference of impacts of road and tram traffic especially. I use a hedonic price model for Prague data. I illustrate a noise concept and its impact on people and society in theory because it encourages economics. I describe the hedonic price model and Noise Sensitivity Depreciation Index. I describe a descriptive analysis, regression analysis, modeling of hedonic price function of tram noise and road noise in practical part. I learn I can't compare hedonic models of tram noise and road noise because noise coefficients are not significant and they are bad oriented. Therefore I create the hedonic price model for night noise that was only one significant and negative.

This study explores the concept of improved train infrastructure in Sweden and how it affects the attractiveness of cities. The research uses a difference-in-differences model to determine whether the construction of the Bothnia Line in northern Sweden has had an impact on real estate prices in the municipalities Nordmaling and Robertsfors between 2008-2016. By employing the hedonic price model, the study finds evidence that house-specific factors such total house size in square meters, location near water and size of backyard all play a role in determining the final purchase price of houses in the two municipalities. However, the findings of this study do not indicate that the launch or the subsequent investments on the Bothnia Line has had any measurable impact on the real estate prices in the region. This is in line with previous research on the project.

Rapid transit systems often create city developments and raise the property values. Basically, residential property price is characterised by number of characteristics including the transportations attributes. Empirical studies have drawn impacts of transportation in different ways. This thesis studies the hedonic price model to better understand the influence of mass rapid transit systems on the prices of condominium in Bangkok. The research question is "How the accessibility of rapid transit system affects the price of condominium in Bangkok?" The thesis explains the relationship between condominium prices and accessibility to mass rapid transit systems, as well as other influences, using hedonic price model. The research conducts cross-sectional study approach that uses the data with high level of flexibility at a particular point in time. Five models have been used in this thesis including the entire area model, models of proximity to rapid transit station, and sub-area models. Consequently evidences from the entire area model indicate that proximity to the rapid transit systems has a significant negative effect on condominium prices. Besides, the research also points out number of important characteristics that influence the prices of condominium including distance to main street and public facilities in the area. However, the clustered models show that there is no significant effect of proximity to mass rapid transits on condominium prices. The thesis has raised the knowledge and gained better understanding of the hedonic price model especially its application to the property market. The findings of this thesis can lead to an analysis of property values as well as other price model in other field of study.

Shopping malls, as an important type of commercial facilities, are growing dramatically.They have gradually become one of the most dominant factors that can influence people's daily life as well as a city's economic development. People's willingness to pay for dwellings is also primarily associated with the surrounding commercial layout.Hence, it is of interest to find out more from a quantitative perspective on the relationship between shopping malls and housing prices. This study aims to analyzehow the prices of condominiums will be affected by the proximity of shopping malls.Two aspects are considered and examined in the empirical study, namely a proximity to the shopping mall, and the number of shopping malls within 3 kilometers radius. Wetry to examine if there is any price premium for those apartments near the shoppingmall or with more shopping malls in the neighborhood. In this empirical study, 36shopping malls in different locations in the county of Stockholm, Sweden, is utilized.The sample of transactions consists of 336,914 apartments. By using regression analysis, based on the traditional hedonic model, the results show that there is an inverse relationship between the apartment prices and its distance from the shopping mall while the number of shopping malls is positively correlated with apartment prices. / Köpcentra som en viktig typ av kommersiella anläggningar växer dramatiskt dessa år. De har gradvis blivit en av de mest dominerande faktorerna som kan påverka människors vardag och en stads ekonomiska utveckling. Människors villighet att betala för husen på marknaden är också till stor del kopplad till den omgivande kommersiella utformningen. Därför är det nödvändigt för oss att ta reda på mer i ett mer kvantitativt perspektiv om förhållandet mellan köpcentra och bostadspriset. Denna studie syftar tillatt diskutera hur priset på bostäder kommer att påverkas av köpcentra. Två aspekter beaktas och undersöks under en empirisk studie, som är närheten till köpcentret och den andra är antalet köpcentra inom 3 km avstånd. Målet är att avslöja om det finns något prispremie för dessa fastigheter nära köpcentret eller med fler köpcentra i närheten. I denna empiriska studie tas 36 köpcentra på olika platser som prov i Stockholms län, Sverige. Sedan kommer transaktionsdata där proverna består av 336,914 lägenheter behandlas och analyseras i Stata. Genom att använda giltiga transaktionsdata, kombinera med matematiska ekvationer och obligatorisk statistiskkunskap, är syftet med denna studie att beskriva och sammanfatta data för att sedan genomföra regressionsanalys baserat på fyra hedoniska modeller, inklusive både linjär och log-linjär form. Regressionsresultatet är signifikant vid 1% konfidensnivå, vilket innebär att de förklarande variablerna verkligen har betydande effekter på de beroende variablerna. Resultaten visar att det finns en omvänd relation mellan bostadspriset och dess avstånd från köpcentret. Medan antalet köpcentra är positivt korrelerat med bostadspriset.

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