Opportunity Zones: A Quantitative Analysis of Place-Based Investment on Housing Values

Abstract

Place-based tax incentive programs have been around for years to try to bring capital into distressed communities, but with the creation of Opportunity Zones in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act the scope of the programs was expanded nationally. This study analyzes the effect that Opportunity Zones in Georgia have on housing price changes from 2015 – 2018 through a multivariable linear regression model. The results find that Opportunity Zone designations on the county level have a strong statistically significant positive effect on the amount that housing value has changed in comparison to counties without Opportunity Zone designations. Additionally, this paper address concerns that Opportunity Zones present for gentrification.