Institutional investors typically allocate under 5 per cent of their portfolios to income-producing real estate, yet the results of most academic studies imply that far larger allocations are optimal. One widespread argument is that the conflict between observed behaviour and scholarly...

A new survey of over 2000 jurisdictions across all major housing markets in the US documents how regulation of residential building varies across space. New evidence on what a `typical' degree of local regulation entails is provided. In addition, data on how the stringency of land use control...

The scale and size distribution of US metropolitan areas from 1910 to 1995 are documented and analysed. The data show that the country's population became increasingly concentrated, prior to the Second World War, in the largest metropolitan areas in the top decile of the size distribution by...