High home ownership, higher unemployment

According to a new study co-authored by David Blanchflower, the Bruce V. Rauner Professor of Economics, an increase of home ownership is associated with higher rates of unemployment, reports The Wall Street Journal.

“A doubling of the rate of home ownership in a US state is followed in the long run by more than a doubling of the later unemployment rate,” the authors write.

A rise in home ownership, the study finds, leads to three problems:

• Lower levels of labor mobility
• Greater commuting times
• Fewer new businesses

Read the full story, published 5/7/13 by The Wall Street Journal.