In this dissertation, I explore how economic decisions diverge for different age groups. Two essays address the location decisions of older households while the third examines why different age cohorts donate to charities. The first essay estimates how the age distribution of the population across cities will change as the number of older adults rises. I use a residential sorting model to estimate the location preference heterogeneity between younger and older households. I then simulate where the two household types will live in 2030. All MSAs end up with a higher proportion of older households in 2030, and only eight of 243 MSAs experience a decline in the number of older households. The results suggest that MSAs in upstate New York and on the west coast, particularly in California, will have the largest number of older households in 2030. Florida will remain a popular place for older households, but its relative importance may diminish in the future. The second essay explores whether the basic motivations for charitable giving differ by age cohort. Using the results from a randomized field experiment, I test whether benefits to self or benefits to others drives the charitable giving decision for each age cohort. I find limited heterogeneity for benefits to self. Individuals between the ages of 50 and 64 increase average donations more than any other age cohort in response to emphasizing warm glow, and this heterogeneity is exclusively driven by larger conditional gifts. The third essay is preliminary joint work with H. Spencer Banzhaf and Carlianne Patrick. We build a unique data set of local homestead exemptions, which vary by generosity and eligibility requirements, for tax jurisdictions in Georgia. Using school-district-level Census data since 1970 along with the history of such exemptions, we will explore the impact of these exemptions, particularly exemptions targeting older households, on the demographic makeup of each jurisdiction and consider the impact of these laws on the relative levels of housing capital consumed by older and younger households.

After a 100-year history, traditional zoning practices are being challenged as a contributing factor in a number of social, heath and economic problems facing cities in the United States. In this context, form based codes have emerged as a possible alternative way for cities to guide development. Growing out of the New Urbanist movement, form based codes frequently mix uses, allow for a greater variety of housing types and encourage development that is both denser and more compact. Despite an established literature which links land-use regulations, and zoning in particular, to fiscal outcomes, the impacts that form based codes have on public finance in the growing number of cities which have adopted them has yet to be fully investigated. The goal of this research is to examine if and how form based codes alter property tax and sales tax generation in the cities that adopt them. To examine the relationship between form based codes and public finance a series of two multivariate regression analyses were conducted using historic property and sales tax data. The first regression analysis was performed using the full list of 122 cities which have adopted form based standards from between 1984 and 2009. In an attempt to limit the diversity of sample cities and improve the ability to generalize results a second regression analysis was performed using a smaller list of 47 cities with populations between 50,000 and 200,000 thousand that had adopted form based standards between 1984 and 2009. The results of the first analysis established that a statistically significant positive relationship existed between the presence of form based standards which were implemented citywide and observed property tax revenue both in total and on a per capita basis. Similarly, a statistically significant positive relationship between the presence of form based standards implemented at the neighborhood level and total property tax revenue was observed. No significant relationship was found between the presence of neighborhood level standards and per capita property tax revenue. Further no significant relationship was found between form based standards and sales tax revenue. In general, these findings support the theory that form based codes and the development they allow, does alter the amount of property tax a city collects, but does not support the theory that form based codes affect sales tax revenues by facilitating the development of a more conducive urban, walkable environment or for any other reason. The results of the second regression analysis using data from cities with populations between 50,000 and 200,000 showed a significant positive relationship between the presences of citywide form based standards and total property tax revenue and per capita property tax revenue. Analysis of sales tax data showed a positive relationship between total sales tax revenue and the presence of form based standards at the neighborhood level. No other significant relationship between form based standards and sales tax revenue was observed. Similar, to analysis of all cities, the results for cities with population of 50,000 to 200,000 support the theory that form based codes and the development they allow does alter the amount of property tax a city collects, and that form based codes do not affect sales tax revenues except in the case of codes adopted at the neighborhood level, where a generally positive relationship was identified at the 10% confidence interval. Following this multivariate regression analysis, a case study of Saratoga Springs, New York was completed. Located in the far reaches of the Albany Metropolitan Area, Saratoga Springs developed as a popular tourist destination in the mid 1800’s. After experiencing economic decline in line with that of its peer cities in the mid to late 20th century, Saratoga Springs has experience a boom and now boast some of the highest home values in Upstate New York. In 2003 the city was one of the first in country to adopt form based standards, which have guided a significant amount of development in the city’s historic downtown as the city re-emerged as a popular tourist destination. Since the adoption of form based standards in Saratoga Springs both property tax and sales tax receipts have doubled.