Working Papers

Summary: This study applies two-stage hedonic estimation to assess household preferences for scattered greenery (e.g., roadside trees, yard bushes) in dense urban areas. Linking proprietary survey data on property and resident characteristics with high-resolution satellite imagery, we find strong heterogeneity: some households are willing to pay substantial amounts, while others show little interest. On average, households pay about 1,540 yen per month if owners and 300 yen if renters. Wealthier households and those with children or strong health awareness value greenery more, whereas single households and those planning to move soon value it less.

Summary: This study examines how the neighborhood socioeconomic status differentiates school quality. To address this issue, we exploit the elimination of school zones in public high schools in Nagasaki City, Japan. Before the elimination in 2002, the local government assigned students to each school depending on test scores and residence to equalize the educational level across schools. While the reform enabled the students to choose a school on their own, the gap in academic performance across schools has widened. We found that one possible reason for this gap is the concentration of students from highly educated areas to schools with location advantages in terms of accessibility.

Summary: We examine how housing markets and demographics respond to newly introduced aircraft noise, exploiting a natural experiment in Tokyo. In 2020, Haneda Airport adopted new landing paths that exposed previously unaffected neighborhoods, with locations determined by runway geometry rather than local factors. Using rich transaction data and a difference-in-differences design, we estimate a 4% decline in property prices immediately after the change, followed by recovery within two years despite no mitigation policies. We also find evidence of demographic re-sorting, especially fewer younger residents, alongside signs of adaptation. These results suggest that in dense, high-demand cities, the disamenity of new noise exposure may diminish over time.

Summary: This study investigates how prosociality, community social capital, and their interaction influenced subjective well-being (SWB) during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. Using a four-wave panel of about 25,000 individuals from 2019–2022, we trace changes in SWB before and after the outbreak. Prior to the pandemic, higher SWB was evident only among highly prosocial individuals. Afterward, non-prosocial individuals in low-social-capital communities experienced sharp declines, while those in high-social-capital areas were protected. These results indicate that trust and cooperative norms mitigate mental health losses in crises by allowing non-prosocial individuals to benefit from others’ preventive behavior. The findings highlight the joint role of personal traits and community context in resilience.

Summary: This study examines how rare acceptances to top-tier universities affect subsequent cohorts in Japanese high schools with low university enrollment. Using nationwide acceptance records from 2001–2021 and an event study design, I show that a single “top university admit” persistently raises the selectivity of universities later attended by graduates. These effects are not explained by changes in resources or student composition but likely operate through belief-based spillovers and role model effects that shift expectations and motivation. The results highlight the role of indirect peer influence and institutional learning in shaping educational outcomes, especially in disadvantaged schools.

Summary: This study examines how gradual relaxation of school-district rules for public high schools in Matsue City, Japan, affected land prices and student achievement. Until 2008, students outside a district could not attend its academic high school. That year, the district rule was abolished for the top academic track and partly relaxed for the general track, with quotas for outside students later expanded to 20%. Using hedonic land-price models with fixed effects (2003–2018) and a regression discontinuity at district boundaries, we find land prices fell in high-quality school districts after relaxation. University entry analysis shows only the most academic students were affected, while enrollment in national or all universities remained stable.