Confederate Memorials and the Housing Market

89 Pages Posted: 10 Feb 2022 Last revised: 19 Oct 2023

See all articles by T. Clifton Green

T. Clifton Green

Emory University - Department of Finance

Russell Jame

University of Kentucky - Gatton College of Business and Economics

Jaemin Lee

Emory University - Goizueta Business School

Jaeyeon Lee

University of California, Berkeley - Haas School of Business

Date Written: January 31, 2022

Abstract

We find that Black, Democrat, and college-educated homeowners are less likely to live on Confederate memorial streets. Moreover, houses on Confederate streets sell for 3% less. The Confederate effect does not spillover to adjacent houses, consistent with direct name rather than neighborhood effects. The price effect increases following attention-grabbing events that highlight racial underpinnings of Confederate symbols. Removing Confederate school names is associated with price increases for local houses. Aversion to houses on Confederate streets also holds in experimental settings where house attributes are otherwise identical. The findings suggest that social norms can have important consequences for real estate markets.

Keywords: Confederate Memorials, Housing Markets, House Values

JEL Classification: G1, G51, H7, R21, R28, R31

Suggested Citation

Green, T. Clifton and Jame, Russell and Lee, Jaemin and Lee, Jaeyeon, Confederate Memorials and the Housing Market (January 31, 2022). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4022721 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4022721

T. Clifton Green (Contact Author)

Emory University - Department of Finance ( email )

1300 Clifton Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30322-2710
United States
404-727-5167 (Phone)
404-727-5238 (Fax)

Russell Jame

University of Kentucky - Gatton College of Business and Economics ( email )

550 South Limestone
Lexington, KY 40506
United States

HOME PAGE: http://russelljame.com

Jaemin Lee

Emory University - Goizueta Business School ( email )

Atlanta, GA 30322-2710
United States

Jaeyeon Lee

University of California, Berkeley - Haas School of Business ( email )

545 Student Services Building, #1900
2220 Piedmont Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94720
United States

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