Degree Not Listed / Department Not Listed / Huston Gibson / Recent studies have shown that walkability can have a positive impact on a community. Walkability has been associated with better public health (Jensen et al., 2017), lower carbon emissions (Morris, 2009), more taxes per land area, and more transportation options which helps low income residents (Speck, 2012; Forsyth, 2015). Additionally, there have been studies done that show housing in walkable areas commands a price premium (Pivo & Fisher, 2011). This should be a good sign for communities because walkable areas are more likely to get built if a land developer can fetch a higher price for a walkable property. But what exactly is the walkability premium for properties in Omaha, NE if there is one? The studies that have linked walkability to higher property values were done in larger cities and few studies have looked at smaller metros in the Midwest (Hack, 2013; Leinberger & Alfonzo, 2012). This study seeks help to fill in this gap in the research by looking specifically at walkability’s correlation to property values in Omaha, NE, a mid-size midwestern city. This study looked at three different land uses in Omaha, NE to see if there is a correlation between walkability and property value. The three land uses were single-family houses, apartments, and restaurants. Property values were measured using data from the Douglas County, NE assessor’s office. The walkability of each parcel was measured using a 1-100 scale as generated from WalkScore.com. A positive correlation between WalkScore and property values was found but only in the eastern part of the city. The correlation was highest in the apartment land use and lower but still positive for single-family houses and restaurants. In the western part of Omaha, there were negative correlations between WalkScore and property value across all three land uses. These results are expected to contribute to walkability literature as a case study on the relationship of walkability to property valuation. It could also be used by municipalities and land developers who are interested in the value of properties they are developing for their communities.

The first chapter (with Richard Arnott) considers an atomistic developer who decides when and at what density to develop his land, under a property value tax system characterized by three time-invariant tax rates. The second chapter adds to the controversial literature on private annuities. The third chapter examines whether a parent's illness causes adult children to provide their parents with financial assistance. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2004. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Economics.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Texas at El Paso, 2009. / Title from title screen. Vita. CD-ROM. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.

Gentrification applies not only to the largest and oldest cities; it is a multi-scalar phenomenon playing out in smaller and less prominent settings as well. This study examines temporal changes in property values, demographic characteristics, and types of businesses in the central Oklahoma City area. A major urban revitalization project which began in 1993 created strong gentrification characteristics near the renewal's epicenter, the Bricktown entertainment district. Data suggest that several specific neighborhoods in the surrounding area exhibited rising property values, improving educational attainment rates, decreasing household sizes, and a shift toward cosmopolitan retail activity. While it is evident that Bricktown has been transformed, the socio-economic traits of surrounding neighborhoods have been altered by the ripple effects of urban renewal.

The concern of climate change and Greenhouse Gas emission have increased national consideration toward energy efficiency. Despite noticeable action which have taken by EU cities and Sweden government to mitigate the climate change, there is still shortage in appropriate energy measurements in old residential buildings. Due to the fact that a large share of residential buildings in Sweden have constructed more than 40 years ago, most of them need energy renovation  to enhance efficiency and saving more energy. In order to encourage home owners toward energy efficiency renovations, some cost effective measurements have to introduce to people with the view of effect on property value.  To this end, 50 detached houses and villas in Kronoberg County in Sweden have been chosen and analyzed to identify how renovation can increase the property value. These houses have been set in different categories by location, heating system, deep renovation, energy and aesthetic renovation. After that, compares the sold prices and biding prices for each category. Moreover, it analyses the people behavior toward renovation to see how can motive people to adopt necessary energy efficient renovation. This research also shows the current situation of building renovation, the most favourite renovation which are adopted by people as well as providing information about the factors affect the value of the house after renovation.

This thesis explores the transportation-land use connection through an investigation of accessibility and residential property values. Accessibility, broadly defined as the ability for locations to interact (Hansen, 1959) is considered a key principle of urban economic theory. This project builds upon the recommendations and conclusions of the literature calling for simultaneous consideration of both the quantitative (measured) and qualitative (perceived) impacts of accessibility on residential property values. This thesis utilizes a two stage research methodology in order to investigate the influence of access to amenities on residential property values. First, accessibility is quantified via an accessibility calculation for sample properties from three study areas within the Greater Toronto Area. This calculated access value is then correlated to real property sales data in order to explore the association between access and value. Second, a survey of real estate professionals explores the influence of perception and behavioural characteristics of accessibility and amenities in the residential location decision making process. The quantitative results are statistically significant however, the association between value and access is weak and varying in direction. The qualitative results indicate consistently that homebuyers are willing to pay for access to the amenities that they value. The average value of this access premium is determined to be approximately $10,000 or 3.5% of the average price for a single-detached home in the GTA. Given the methodological challenges experienced in the quantitative measurement of access, the overall results suggest that access does in fact matter. This research contributes to the literature by considering the impact of perception and behavioural characteristics on accessibility. Further this project serves to inform the debate around transportation-land use interactions.

This thesis explores the transportation-land use connection through an investigation of accessibility and residential property values. Accessibility, broadly defined as the ability for locations to interact (Hansen, 1959) is considered a key principle of urban economic theory. This project builds upon the recommendations and conclusions of the literature calling for simultaneous consideration of both the quantitative (measured) and qualitative (perceived) impacts of accessibility on residential property values. This thesis utilizes a two stage research methodology in order to investigate the influence of access to amenities on residential property values. First, accessibility is quantified via an accessibility calculation for sample properties from three study areas within the Greater Toronto Area. This calculated access value is then correlated to real property sales data in order to explore the association between access and value. Second, a survey of real estate professionals explores the influence of perception and behavioural characteristics of accessibility and amenities in the residential location decision making process. The quantitative results are statistically significant however, the association between value and access is weak and varying in direction. The qualitative results indicate consistently that homebuyers are willing to pay for access to the amenities that they value. The average value of this access premium is determined to be approximately $10,000 or 3.5% of the average price for a single-detached home in the GTA. Given the methodological challenges experienced in the quantitative measurement of access, the overall results suggest that access does in fact matter. This research contributes to the literature by considering the impact of perception and behavioural characteristics on accessibility. Further this project serves to inform the debate around transportation-land use interactions.

Problem: Forskning finns avseende vilka lägespreferenser köpare av småhus vanligen föredrar (Betts & Ely, 2008). Forskning finns även avseende hur marknadsföringspsykologi i form av varumärken påverkar konsumentens val av en vara (Arnold, 1993). Däremot har författarna till denna uppsats inte lyckats hitta annan forskning som kopplar samman marknadsföringsteori och bostadsområden, det vill säga hur varumärket påverkar köparens val av bostadsområde i samspel med praktiska faktorer. Studien vill även undersöka hur trendsättare som exempelvis kända personer och yrkesmän inom bostadsbranschen, kan påverka hur ett bostadsområdes efterfrågan kan komma att öka. Syfte: Studiens syfte är att undersöka vilka faktorer som kan få ett bostadsområde att öka alternativt minska i attraktivitet. Metod: För att komma fram till syftet har både kvalitativa och kvantitativa undersökningar utförts. Genom att noggrant välja ut fastighetsmäklare verksamma i Halmstad, har det genom öppna intervjuer framkommit viktig kunskap om vilka trender som råder på bostadsmarknaden i Halmstad. Med en kvantitativ datainsamling har sedan uppfattningen om olika lägespreferenser hos boende i Tylösand, Haverdal, Frösakull och Vishärad undersökts. Slutsats: Studien har kommit fram till att faktorer såsom närhet till kollektivtrafik, närhet till service, närhet till naturområden, rätt läge till solen samt att området är lugnt är viktigt för en köpare. Områdets varumärke har vidare visat sig ha en betydande roll för att vägleda köparen till rätt bostadsområde, samt att varumärket kan ha en avgörande betydelse när köpare väljer mellan bostadsområden i en konkurrenssituation (Arnold, 1993; Kotler et al., ; Melin, 1999). Sålunda, har dock kändisar visat sig ha liten betydelse för de boendes val av bostadsområde. Nyckelord: Bostadsområde, fastighetsvärde, läge, småhus, varumärke / Problem: There is already some research regarding what location preferences house buyers usually prefer (Betts & Ely 2008). There is also research available regarding how marketing psychology in the form of brands, affect consumer choice of goods (Arnold, 1993). However, the authors of this essay were not able to find other research that links marketing theory and residential areas, in other words, how the brand affects the buyer's choice of residential area in close interplay with material factors. The study would also examine how trendsetters, such as celebrities and professionals in the residential sector, can affect how a residential area demand may increase. Purpose: The study aims to investigate factors which may increase and/or decrease the attractiveness of a residential area. Method: To reach the objective, both qualitative and quantitative studies were conducted. By carefully selecting the real estate agents operating in Halmstad, important knowledge has been found through open interviews about the latest trends in the housing market in Halmstad. With a quantitative data gathering, the perception of different location preferences among residents in Tylösand, Haverdal, Frösakull and Vishärad has been investigated. Conclusion: The study has concluded that the factors such as proximity to public transportation, close to services, proximity to natural areas, the correct position of the sun and to a quiet area is important for a buyer. The brand of the area has also been found to have a significant role to guide the buyer to the right neighborhood, and that brand can play a crucial role for the residents choice of residential (Arnold, 1993; Kotler et. al; Melin, 1999). However celebrities have only shown to have little importance on the residents choice of residential area. KeywordsResidential, propertyvalue, location, houses, branding

As the most destructive forest disturbance in British Columbia, wildfire becomes more worrisome for increasing uncertainty due to climate change. The current study investigates the potential to predict wildfire occurrence using climate indexes and quantify its marginal prices for property values at the municipal level, so as to provide a quantitative indicator for decision making in regard to influences of wildfire occurrence in the near future. First, significant correlations between monthly temperature and precipitation and large fire occurrence with distinctions in terms of distances to municipalities are proved by statistical analysis. Monthly wildfire occurrence are then statistically estimated with the four-month lags of the El Niño index and predicted using count models with regional differences. At last, the hedonic pricing model shows distance based positive impact of fire frequency and negative impact of fire size in neighbouring areas on property values. / Graduate / 0366 / 0478 / 0463 / zach_xu@hotmail.com

As the most destructive forest disturbance in British Columbia, wildfire becomes more worrisome for increasing uncertainty due to climate change. The current study investigates the potential to predict wildfire occurrence using climate indexes and quantify its marginal prices for property values at the municipal level, so as to provide a quantitative indicator for decision making in regard to influences of wildfire occurrence in the near future. First, significant correlations between monthly temperature and precipitation and large fire occurrence with distinctions in terms of distances to municipalities are proved by statistical analysis. Monthly wildfire occurrence are then statistically estimated with the four-month lags of the El Niño index and predicted using count models with regional differences. At last, the hedonic pricing model shows distance based positive impact of fire frequency and negative impact of fire size in neighbouring areas on property values. / Graduate / 0366 / 0478 / 0463 / zach_xu@hotmail.com