What is the Effect of Rock Quarries on Home Prices? An Empirical Analysis of Three Cities

For many Americans, a home is their most valuable asset. Naturally, the threat of a reduction in home values causes concern, which leads to opposition to several sorts of economic development projects and essential infrastructure. Opposition to rock quarries is one example. Evidence on the effects of quarries on home values is scant; the studies are often limited to a single city, leading to questions about generalizability, and use home sales occurring long after the quarry begins operations, introducing selection bias. In this article, I apply multiple empirical methods to data on homes sales from three cities in Ohio. I find no evidence to suggest quarries reduce home values. I also offer evidence to suggest that the typical approach to quantify such effects—a home’s distance from the quarry—may be unreliable given the idiosyncrasies of real estate markets