The recent housing bust has reignited interest in psychological theories of speculative excess (Shiller, 2007). I investigate this issue by identifying a segment of the U.S. population-evangelical protestants-that may be less prone to speculative motives, and uncover a significant negative...

The article uses three alternative models and monthly data to investigate whether the Federal Funds Rate or the rate on standard 30 year mortgages in the US for the period 1987 to 2010 impacts an index of housing prices. The results indicate that positive shocks to the Federal Funds Rate are...