Okmyung Bin

Effects of Flood Hazards on Property Values: Evidence Before and After Hurricane Floyd

This study uses a hedonic property price function to estimate the effects of flood hazards on residential property value. Utilizing data from sales of 8,000 single-family residential homes between 1992 and 2002 in Pitt County, North Carolina, an area that experienced significant flooding from Hurricane Floyd in September 1999, we find that a house located within a floodplain has a lower market value than an equivalent house located outside the floodplain. Furthermore, the price discount from locating within a floodplain is significantly larger after Hurricane Floyd than before. (JEL Q54)

Flood Hazards, Insurance Rates, and Amenities: Evidence from the Coastal Housing Market

This study employs the hedonic property price method to examine the effects of flood hazard on coastal property values. We utilize Geographic Information System data on National Flood Insurance Program flood zones and residential property sales from Carteret County, North Carolina. Our results indicate that location within a flood zone lowers property value. Price differentials for flood risk and the capitalized value of flood insurance premiums are roughly equivalent-both exhibiting a nonlinear relationship in flood probability. Our results support the conclusion that flood zone designation and insurance premiums convey risk information to potential buyers in the coastal housing market. Copyright The Journal of Risk and Insurance, 2008.

Viewscapes and Flood Hazard: Coastal Housing Market Response to Amenities and Risk

Coastal amenities and risk are so highly correlated that separate identification within the hedonic framework is potentially challenging. In this study, we construct a three-dimensional measure of ocean view, viewscape, accounting for natural topography and built obstruction that varies independent of risk classification to disentangle these spatially integrated housing characteristics. A spatial autoregressive hedonic model is developed to provide consistent estimates of the willingness to pay for coastal amenities and risk. Our findings suggest that incorporating the GIS-based view measures can be successful in isolating risk factors from spatial amenities. (JEL Q24, Q26)

Some Consumer Surplus Estimates for North Carolina Beaches

We estimate consumer surplus of a beach day using the single-site travel cost method. Onsite visitation data for seven North Carolina beaches were collected between July and November of 2003. Two pooled count data models, corrected for endogenous stratification and truncation, are estimated to account for bias stemming from onsite sampling. One model pertains to beach visitors that make single day trips to the beach, while the other is for visitors that stay onsite overnight. In each model, we allow for heterogeneity across sites through intercept-shifting and demand slope-shifting dummy variables. Depending upon the site, the estimated net benefits of a day at a beach in North Carolina range between

A LOGIT ANALYSIS OF VEHICLE EMISSIONS USING INSPECTION AND MAINTENANCE TESTING DATA

11 and

Evidence on the Amenity Value of Wetlands in a Rural Setting

80 for those users making day trips and between

A semiparametric hedonic model for valuing wetlands

11 and

Measuring the Impact of Sea-Level Rise on Coastal Real Estate: A Hedonic Property Model Approach

41 for those users that stay onsite overnight. These estimates are of the same order of magnitude as the results from earlier studies using travel cost methods but are considerably larger than the previous findings based upon stated preference methods.

Riparian Buffers and Hedonic Prices: A Quasi-Experimental Analysis of Residential Property Values in the Neuse River Basin

Abstract Many states use vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/M) programs to identify high polluting vehicles and ensure that they operate in accordance with standards. While I/M programs are generally regarded as a valuable means to curb urban air pollution, they have been often criticized for their cost-ineffectiveness. One criticism has been centered on the blanket approach that requires all vehicles within the program boundaries to participate regardless of their emission conditions. This paper explores the basis for a selective sampling of vehicles most likely to be pollution violators. Using I/M testing data from Portland, Oregon, it estimates logit equations for the likelihood of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emission violations given a set of vehicle characteristics. The results indicate that vehicle age, engine size, and odometer reading all play a significant role in determining the probability of emission test failure.

The Impact of Technical and Non-technical Measures of Water Quality on Coastal Waterfront Property Values in South Florida

This study uses a hedonic property price method to estimate how wetlands affect residential property values in a rural area. The study utilizes wetland inventory data coupled with extensive property sales records between January 2000 and September 2004 from Carteret County, NC. Our results indicate that i) a higher wetland percentage within a quarter mile of a property, ii) closer proximity to the nearest wetland, and iii) larger size of the nearest wetland are associated with lower residential property values. These results contrast with previous hedonic studies that use data from urban areas, which found positive associations between wetland and property values. The amenity value of wetlands appears to depend at least as much on the characteristics of the area being considered as it does on the characteristics of the wetlands.