Abstract

Homeownership, Neighborhood Characteristics, and Children's Positive Behaviors Among Low- and Moderate-Income Households [PDF]
Authors: Michal Grinstein-Weiss, Clinton Key, Yeong Yeo, Joan Yoo, Krista Holub, and Andrea Taylor
In Press at Urban Studies
September 2011

Using date on low- to moderate-income households in the Community Advantage Program (CAP) survey we examine homeownership, neighborhood characteristics, and the interaction between the two on the positive behavior of children from low- and moderate-income households. In order to control for potential selection bias and endogeneity problems, we employ propensity score weighting and hierarchical regression to tease apart the effects of homeownership, neighborhood characteristics, and their interaction on child positive behavior.  We find no effect of homeownership or neighborhood characteristics, respectively, on children's positive behavior when the interaction between the two is not included in the model. However, homeownership was found to have a stronger positive effect on children's positive behavior as neighborhood population density increases and at approximately 4,000 persons per square mile (approximate population density of San Diego, CA), homeownership significantly increases children's overall scores on the positive behavior scale.

 

 

Keywords: User Cost, Equivalent Rent, Low-Income Homeownership, Community Reinvestment Act
JEL: R21, R28, R31, R38, D14