Does Variation in Public Housing Waiting Lists Induce Intra-Urban Mobility?

Abstract

Rental assistance is a major part of the welfare package offered to low-income households. Unlike entitlement programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), households must wait to receive housing benefits. Researchers have overlooked the potential effect that variance in the length of public housing waiting lists may have on intra-urban mobility rates. While households are typically eligible for the same housing benefit within a metropolitan area, the difference in the discounted stream of housing benefits that a household can expect to receive may be substantial. Evidence in this paper suggests that intra-urban mobility is reduced by a small amount in metropolitan areas which have higher median waiting times and which have less variation across waiting lists.