Equal price for equal place? Demand-driven racial discrimination in the housing market

Anthony Lepinteur, Giorgia Menta and Sofie Waltl

Regional Science and Urban Economics, 2025, vol. 111, issue C

Abstract: We presented participants to an online study in Luxembourg with fictitious real-estate advertisements, tasking them to appraise the described properties. A random subset was also shown sellers’ surnames, strongly framed to signal their origins. All else equal, sellers with sub-Saharan African surnames were systematically offered lower prices — amounting to an appraisal penalty of EUR 20,000. This figure is highly heterogeneous and can amount up to around EUR 58,000 for older and low-educated participants. We provide evidence that the appraisal bias likely passes through onto final sales prices and that it may be largely due to statistical rather than taste-based discrimination.

Keywords: Racial discrimination; Housing; Randomised online experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J15 R21 R31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Related works:
Working Paper: Equal Price for Equal Place? Demand-Driven Racial Discrimination in the Housing Market (2025)
Working Paper: Equal Price for Equal Place? Demand-Driven Racial Discrimination in the Housing Market (2023)
Working Paper: Equal Price for Equal Place? Demand-Driven Racial Discrimination in the Housing Market (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:regeco:v:111:y:2025:i:c:s0166046225000067

DOI: 10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2025.104089

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