Tradeoffs and Neighborhood Spillovers in Affordable Housing
with Yvonne Ng
Presented to the Seattle Office of Housing as the “MFTE Evaluation Final Report”
Presentations: WEAI 2025 · AREUEA 2026 · APPAM 2026 (accepted)
News coverage: Seattle Times, The Urbanist
Rachel M. Storer Award for the best paper in labor economics (UW)
Abstract
Policymakers in many cities face a dual challenge: housing affordability and supply shortages. In response, inclusionary zoning (IZ) policies offer subsidies to encourage the integration of income-restricted units into market-rate developments.
We study a long-running IZ program in Seattle, showing how these policies change where housing is built and the effects of development on these neighborhoods. Although program requirements are uniform, differences in local conditions lead to varied responses from developers and landlords.
We document a trade-off: in higher-income neighborhoods, rent discounts for subsidized units are larger, but developer participation is more sensitive to reductions in policy generosity. Using granular rental data and spatial difference-in-differences,
we show that IZ lowers nearby rents in lower-income areas but raises them in high-income areas, consistent with direct competition in the former and building-driven neighborhood changes in the latter. To interpret these patterns, we develop a quantitative urban model with developer choices and rationed affordable housing.
Voluntary IZ programs can expand access to high-quality housing for lower-income residents but may also contribute to gentrification in wealthier areas, resulting in mixed welfare effects.
Parenting Centers and Caregiver Mental Health: Evidence from a Large-scale Randomized Controlled Trial in China
with Qi Jiang, Sarah-Eve Dill, Sean Sylvia, Manpreet K. Singh, Xinshu She, Alexis Medina, and Scott Rozelle
Child Development 93 (2022): 1559–1573
Journal version
Abstract
This study conducts an exploratory analysis of the impacts of a center-based early childhood development intervention on the mental health of caregivers, using data from a cluster-randomized controlled trial of 1664 caregivers (M_age = 36.87 years old) of 6- to 24-month-old children in 100 villages in rural China. Caregivers and children in 50 villages received individual parenting training, group activities and open play space in village parenting centers. The results show no significant overall change in caregiver-reported mental health symptoms after 1 year of intervention. Subgroup analyses reveal heterogeneous effects by caregiver socioeconomic status and identity (mother vs. grandmother). Findings suggest that early childhood development interventions without targeted mental health components may not provide sufficient support to improve caregiver mental health.
Flat or Flats? The Effect of Up-zoning on Home Prices, Informality, and Mortality in Delhi
with Tynan Challenor, Sahil Gandhi, and Vaidehi Tandel
Presentations: Northwest Development Workshop 2026
Finding Signal in the Noise: Measurement of Mobile Phone and Mobile Internet Access
with Seth Garz
Presentations: Oxford Digital Technologies and Sustainable Development Workshop 2024
