The Perils and Promise of Living Together: Condominiums in the Urban Landscape

Condominium construction can increase mixed-income housing and home ownership for less affluent individuals. Condominiums have many benefits including sharing costs across units, however, they also have costs that single family homes or multifamily rentals do not. For example, condominium owners pay a monthly maintenance fee for the local public good, but low-income residents may fail to make payments, leading to sanctions. Economists Leah Brooks, Lu Han, and Bryan Stuart will examine the extent to which the benefits of condominium ownership outweigh the costs for low-income residents. They will analyze data from the Census and the American Community Survey for their study.