Affordable Housing and Walkable Neighborhoods: A National Urban Analysis
October 28, 2025Learning from Opportunity Zones: How to improve place-based policies
October 28, 2025Where is the opportunity in opportunity zones?
By Sage, A., Langen, M., & Van de Minne, A.
Full Citation
Sage, A., Langen, M., & Van de Minne, A. (2023). Where is the opportunity in opportunity zones?. Real Estate Economics, 51(2), 338-371.
Key Findings
In December 2017, the U.S. Congress passed into law the Opportunity Zone (OZ) program. As an OZ, designated low-income census tracts provide considerable tax breaks to property investors, intending to attract investments and spur economic growth. As the success of the program is dependent on investors’ responses, we analyze market reactions in a difference-in-differences framework. We identify two potential effects on property markets: tax breaks for investors and expected land value appreciation. Our results show that tax breaks are priced efficiently. Qualified properties increase by 7–20% in price, while vacant land increase up to 37%.