Hurricane Katrina Floods New Jersey: The Role of Information in the Market Response to Flood Risk
96 Pages Posted: 1 Jul 2019 Last revised: 2 Jul 2023
Date Written: June 2019
Abstract
This study uses hedonic property models to explore how coastal real estate markets subject to heterogeneous information treatments respond to flood risk. We identify reactions to flood risk, distinctly from price effects due to flood damage, by examining non-local flooding events. Utilizing a difference-in-difference methodology, we test whether the coastal real estate market in New Jersey responds to several well-publicized hurricanes and tropical storms that did not strike the Atlantic seaboard. We find that homes in high flood risk zones situated in towns that participate in public flood awareness activities incur a 7 to 16 percent decrease in price after the non-local shock.
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