Abstract

Existing evidence shows that increases in property prices produce immediate positive effects on economic activity and, particularly, on business creation. In this paper, we ask the following question: how does a housing boom alter the selection of individuals that open a firm? The answer to this question is important to understand how robust and long-lasting is the positive effect of a housing shock. We find that the early 2000 US housing boom increased entry into entrepreneurship mostly for lower ability house-owners. We derive our results using IQ scores and an indirect measure of ability constructed from individuals’ wage history.

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