It is customary to assume that an indicator of a latent variable is driven by the latent variable and some random noise. In contrast, a background indicator is also systematically influenced by variables outside the structural model of interest. Background indicators deserve attention because in...

This paper first compares house price cycles in advanced and emerging economies using a new quarterly house price dataset covering the period 1990- 2012. It is found that that house prices in emerging economies grow faster, are more volatile, less persistent and less synchronized across...