Historic Amenities and Housing Externalities: Evidence from the Netherlands

Abstract

We study the economic effects of public investments in historic amenities by looking at their impact on house prices. We distinguish between direct and indirect effects of investments. A nationwide housing transaction is used as well as data on investments in cultural heritage. A 1 million euro per square kilometre increase in investments in cultural heritage leads to a price increase of 1.5–3.0% of non-targeted buildings. We do not find evidence that the maintenance state of non-eligible properties is improved, suggesting that any price effect due to investments in cultural heritage is a direct effect of investments.