THE HOUSING CYCLE IN EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS - VARIATIONS AMONG CITIES AND TOWNS

Numerous studies over the years have attempted to identify the impact of amenities on housing price levels within specific metropolitan area s. It is well known, for example, that local public goods, tax burdens , school quality, crime rates, and the like are capitalized into land values. This article divides the Eastern Massachusetts area into small groups of similar towns and examines the pattern of price changes acr oss those groups during the boom, bust, and recovery periods. Since 19 82, differences in appreciation rates across cities and towns have bee n particularly pronounced. The authors find that housing affordability was the most important factor explaining price changes during the boo m period, but location, schools, and a town's employment base became r elatively more consequential during the bust and the recovery.