Title

Property Rights and Urban Development: Initial Title Quality Matters Even When it No Longer Matters

Authors

Authors

I. A. Navarro;G. K. Turnbull

Comments

Authors: contact us about adding a copy of your work at STARS@ucf.edu

Abbreviated Journal Title

J. Real Estate Financ. Econ.

Keywords

Squatting; Property rights; Property title; Housing quality; DEVELOPING-COUNTRIES; RENTAL EXTERNALITY; Business, Finance; Economics; Urban Studies

Abstract

Formal title to property allows owners to borrow for investing in improvements. Title legalization laws, however, appear to yield only modest increases in housing quality in developing countries. We offer a simple model in which squatters initially balance initial investment in low quality structures to reduce the risk of eviction against the future effect of increasing the marginal cost of improving quality. The effort to secure initial possession thereby creates a legacy effect, reducing subsequent investments in housing quality. Empirical tests using Bolivian data yield results consistent with the legacy theory: initial title risk suppresses long run housing quality.

Journal Title

Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics

Volume

49

Issue/Number

1

Publication Date

1-1-2014

Document Type

Article

DOI Link

http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11146-013-9417-0

Language

English

First Page

1

Last Page

22

WOS Identifier

WOS:000336392900001

ISSN

0895-5638

Recommended Citation

"Property Rights and Urban Development: Initial Title Quality Matters Even When it No Longer Matters" (2014). Faculty Bibliography 2010s. 5878.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/facultybib2010/5878