Abstract
The Japanese housing market has experienced a rapid increase in the number of vacant housing units due to regulatory obstacles and a decreasing population. Abandoned vacant houses can cause negative externalities in the surrounding neighborhood, due to illegal dumping of garbage, increased risks of arson, and building collapse. Few empirical studies exist that focus on the negative externalities of vacant houses, because of data limitations. This paper investigates these negative externalities by using a complete field survey conducted in the Toshima municipality, one of 23 wards in the Tokyo prefecture. We find that a vacant (single-family) house devalues nearby rental prices by 1-2 percent, on average. Vacant houses with property defects cause greater spillover effects. Addressing dilapidated vacant housing with overgrown vegetation and combustible materials would likely produce annual tax gains greater than one million yen (approximately nine thousand U.S. dollars) per vacant housing unit. Given the substantial number of existing vacant houses, local governments should identify the types of vacant houses causing the most severe negative externalities based on empirical assessment and implement efficient countermeasures to address the issue.
Highlights
The Japanese housing market has experienced a drastic increase in both the volume of vacant housing and in vacancy rates (Figure 1), because of an aging population and regulatory obstacles.1 The number of vacant housing units reached almost 8.5 million in 2018
Regarding the coefficients of dV Hi5(0j) and dV Hi(j)100, the results show that vacant houses entail a negative externality if the building is slanted; there is damage to a wall, roof or window; there is a fallen object or combustible material; and the house has exuberating branches
We estimated the negative externalities associated with vacant single-family houses in the Toshima municipality in Tokyo, Japan, using a hedonic approach with data on 594 vacant houses and 3,806 rental housing units
Summary
The Japanese housing market has experienced a drastic increase in both the volume of vacant housing and in vacancy rates (Figure 1), because of an aging population and regulatory obstacles. The number of vacant housing units reached almost 8.5 million in 2018. Managed vacant housing can be a source of negative externalities for the surrounding neighborhood due to the illegal dumping of garbage, disturbed landscape, increased risks of arson, building collapse, fire hazards, and crime (Cohen, 2001; Schilling, 2002; Department for Communities and Local Government, 2007). In Japan, approximately 22 percent of vacant housing units are vandalized and this ratio is as high as 30 percent for single-family vacant houses.. According to a survey of municipalities conducted by the Ministry of Land and Transport in 2009,4 approximately three-quarters of local authorities responding to the questionnaire reported that vacant housing and vacant lots in their municipalities harmed the landscape and decreased security in neighborhoods. 20 percent experienced issues of illegal dumping of garbage and and 36 percent experienced arson in vacant houses. Potential buyers and renters may only be willing to pay a lower amount to live near vacant houses than to live in a neighborhood without any vacant houses
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
