The End of the American Dream? Inequality and Segregation in US Cities

Alessandra Fogli, Veronica Guerrieri, Mark Ponder and Marta Prato

No 111, Opportunity and Inclusive Growth Institute Working Papers from Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis

Abstract: Since the 1980s, the US has experienced not only a steady increase in income inequality, but also a contemporaneous rise in residential segregation by income. What is the relationship between inequality and residential segregation? How does it affect intergenerational mobility? We first document a positive correlation between inequality and segregation, both over time and across metro areas. We then develop a general equilibrium model where parents choose the neighborhood where they raise their children and invest in their children’s education. In the model, segregation and inequality amplify each other because of a local spillover that affects the return to education. We calibrate the model to a representative US metro in 1980 and use the micro estimates of neighborhood exposure effects in Chetty and Hendren (2018b) to discipline the strength of the local spillover. We first use the calibrated version of the model to explore the economy’s response to an unexpected skill premium shock. We find that segregation dynamics played a significant role in amplifying the increase in inequality and in dampening intergenerational mobility. We then use the model to explore the effects of policies designed to move poor families to better neighborhoods, like the Moving To Opportunity (MTO) program. We show that scaling up MTO policies induces general equilibrium effects that limit their efficacy.

Date: 2025-01-31
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dge, nep-his, nep-lab and nep-ure
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Related works:
Working Paper: The End of the American Dream? Inequality and Segregation in US Cities (2019)
Working Paper: The End of the American Dream? Inequality and Segregation in US cities (2017)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fip:fedmoi:99487

DOI: 10.21034/iwp.111

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