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The long-run effects of the 1930s HOLC “redlining” maps on place-based measures of economic opportunity and socioeconomic success

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  • Aaronson, Daniel
  • Faber, Jacob
  • Hartley, Daniel
  • Mazumder, Bhashkar
  • Sharkey, Patrick

Abstract

We estimate the long-run effects of the 1930s Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) redlining maps on census tract-level measures of socioeconomic status and economic opportunity from the Opportunity Atlas (Chetty et al., 2018). We use two identification strategies to identify the long-run effects of differential access to credit along HOLC boundaries. The first compares cross-boundary differences along actual HOLC boundaries to a comparison group of boundaries that had similar pre-existing differences as the actual boundaries. A second approach uses a statistical model to identify boundaries that were least likely to have been chosen by the HOLC. We find that the maps had large and statistically significant causal effects on a wide variety of outcomes measured at the census tract level for cohorts born in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Suggested Citation

  • Aaronson, Daniel & Faber, Jacob & Hartley, Daniel & Mazumder, Bhashkar & Sharkey, Patrick, 2021. "The long-run effects of the 1930s HOLC “redlining” maps on place-based measures of economic opportunity and socioeconomic success," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:regeco:v:86:y:2021:i:c:s0166046220303070
    DOI: 10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2020.103622
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    Cited by:

    1. Braxton, John Carter & Chikhale, Nisha & Herkenhoff, Kyle & Phillips, Gordon, 2024. "Intergenerational Mobility and Credit," IZA Discussion Papers 16826, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Mitchell, Jeffrey & Chihaya, Guilherme Kenji, 2022. "Tract level associations between historical residential redlining and contemporary fatal encounters with police," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 302(C).
    3. Jean C. Bikomeye & Sima Namin & Chima Anyanwu & Caitlin S. Rublee & Jamie Ferschinger & Ken Leinbach & Patricia Lindquist & August Hoppe & Lawrence Hoffman & Justin Hegarty & Dwayne Sperber & Kirsten , 2021. "Resilience and Equity in a Time of Crises: Investing in Public Urban Greenspace Is Now More Essential Than Ever in the US and Beyond," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-39, August.
    4. Kampanelis, Sotiris & Chronopoulos, Dimitris & Wilson, John O.S., 2024. "Finance and intergenerational mobility: Evidence from US banking reforms," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    5. Lara J. Cushing & Shiwen Li & Benjamin B. Steiger & Joan A. Casey, 2023. "Historical red-lining is associated with fossil fuel power plant siting and present-day inequalities in air pollutant emissions," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 8(1), pages 52-61, January.
    6. Reed T. DeAngelis & Brian G. Frizzelle & Robert A. Hummer & Kathleen Mullan Harris, 2024. "Traces of Historical Redlining in the Contemporary United States: New Evidence from the Add Health Cohort," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 43(4), pages 1-13, August.
    7. Ahlfeldt, Gabriel M. & Gobillon, Laurent, 2021. "Introduction to the Special issue: “Emerging Trends in Urban Economics”," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    8. Noel A Manzano Gómez, 2023. "Planning for social distancing: How the legacy of historical epidemics shaped COVID-19's spread in Madrid," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 60(9), pages 1570-1587, July.
    9. Dorceta E. Taylor & Katherine Allison & Tevin Hamilton & Ashley Bell, 2023. "Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Food Access in Two Predominantly White Cities: The Case of Lansing, East Lansing, and Surrounding Townships in Michigan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-49, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Intergenerational mobility; Redlining; Economic opportunity; Segregation; Access to credit; HOLC;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H81 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - Governmental Loans; Loan Guarantees; Credits; Grants; Bailouts
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R21 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Housing Demand
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population
    • R31 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Housing Supply and Markets

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