Does the federal tax treatment of housing affect the pattern of metropolitan development?

The U.S. tax code allows home owners to deduct mortgage interest and property taxes on their federal income tax forms. It also gives special treatment to the capital gains realized from the sale of owner-occupied housing. These advantages encourage investment in owner-occupied housing. But do these tax breaks have other, more far-reaching consequences? In this article, Dick Voith looks at how the tax code's special treatment of owner-occupied housing may affect metropolitan development