Workshop

Housing: Microdata, macro problems

Organisers

Jonathan Halket, Lars Nesheim

Date & Time

From: 4 May 2016
Until: 5 May 2016

Type

Workshop

Venue

Bank of England
Threadneedle Street,
London,
EC2R 8AH

A host of issues continue to limit understanding of the role housing markets play in the dynamics of financial markets, labour markets, and the wider macro economy. Mortgage and bankruptcy constraints, individual tenure and portfolio choices, potential frictions in the labour, housing and mortgage markets remain promising avenues for theoretical and empirical research and debate. Arguments about policies often hinge on particular modelling assumptions. Which assumptions are of first-order importance? Microdata or theoretical models that shed light on these issues are sought.

The conference featured 13 papers that tackled housing issues from a variety of angles. Examples of issues considered are:

  • Mortgage and bankruptcy constraints in equilibrium
  • Role of individuals’ beliefs and expectations about income and house prices
  • Interactions between housing and labour market choices
  • Tenure choice: Why does anyone buy a house?
  • Housing supply
  • Contracting frictions in housing and mortgage markets
  • Search and matching in housing markets
  • The effects of recent and not-so recent housing/mortgage policies
  • International comparisons

A full conference summary with links to the presentations can be found on the cemmap resource page

This event is co-sponsored by Imperial College Business School and the Bank of England.