Housing Booms and Busts, Labor Market Opportunities, and College Attendance

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Charles, Kerwin Kofi; Hurst, Erik; Notowidigdo, Matthew J.
• 署名单位: University of Chicago; National Bureau of Economic Research; University of Chicago; Northwestern University
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC REVIEW
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0002-8282
• DOI: 10.1257/aer.20151604
• 发表日期: 2018
• 页码: 2947-2994
• 关键词: education; demand; returns; CRISIS; WEALTH; point

摘要

We study how the recent housing boom and bust affected college enrollment during the 2000s. We exploit cross-city variation in local housing booms, which improved labor market opportunities for young men and women. We find that the boom lowered college enrollment, with effects concentrated at two-year colleges. The decline in enrollment during the boom was generally reversed during the bust; however, attainment remains persistently low for particular cohorts, suggesting that reduced educational attainment is an enduring effect of the recent housing cycle. The housing boom can account for approximately 25 percent of the recent slowdown in college attainment.