Land value hot-spots defined by urban configuration

Abstract

Location characteristics and accessibility are widely used in real estate research as they are considered to predominantly shape property values. Space syntax is a well-known methodology for urban analysis, elaborating accessibility measures of the urban grid. Even though urban morphology has a crucial role in property market structure, Space Syntax centrality measures integration and choice, which are used to quantifying urban space accessibility, have gained little attention in land value literature. Recently, there has been a growing interest for spatial statistics which embrace all tools needed for studying spatial phenomena such as the land market, so that spatial relationships and spatial patterns can be interpreted. The proposed methodological framework of the present paper attempts to explore the relationship between land value and geometric accessibility measures (global integration and choice), applying a spatial approach which combines LISA indicators and Space Syntax theory in order to visualize local correlation patterns. In order to be tested and validated, the framework is applied to Xanthi, a medium-sized city in Northern Greece. Results indicate significant relationships between geometric accessibility and objective land values, along with differences in the emerging spatial relationship patterns between different parts of the city.