Land Values, Property Rights, and Home Ownership: Implications for Property Taxation in Peru Working Paper WP17ZH1 Zackary Hawley Texas Christian University Juan José Miranda World Bank W. Charles Sawyer Texas Christian University May 2017 The findings and conclusions of this Working Paper reflect the views of the author(s) and have not been subject to a detailed review by the staff of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Contact the Lincoln Institute with questions or requests for permission to reprint this paper.
[email protected] © 2017 Lincoln Institute of Land Policy Abstract This research studies land values and the associated property tax implications of formal property rights, informal property rights, and squatting. Using the Peruvian Living Standards Measurement Survey data from 2007 to 2012, the research provides estimates of the land value and property tax losses associated with property rights and squatting. We use a hedonic model to obtain these estimates which are then used to provide the implied value of property taxes that are not being collected as a result of informal property rights. The policy implications of the results suggest improved methods for property right assignment that would led to enhanced property tax collections that may lead to funds for the provision of infrastructure in the affected communities. Keywords: Property rights, Squatting, Property taxation, Hedonic price function. About the Authors Zackary Hawley is an assistant professor of economics at Texas Christian University. His scholarship focuses on urban and regional economic issues, public finance, and experimental economics. Within these fields some of his research has examined racial discrimination in housing markets, shortage in organ donation, migration implications of state merit aid scholarships, and social interaction and urban density.