Urban and Housing Economics

Module Code: ECP77303

ECTS Credit: 5
Mandatory/Optional: Elective module (optional)
Period: Semester 3
Module Coordinator: Professor Conor O'Toole
Teaching Staff: Professor Kieran McQuinn, Professor Conor O’Toole, Professor Ronan Lyons

Module Content

This module aims to provide students with an extensive overview of how economists assess and seek to understand the housing market. At the end of the module students will have a comprehensive knowledge of the economics and finance-based theory that is used to understand housing markets and the quantitative models that are used to assess the developments of key housing variables. The module will also provide students with an understanding of the different measures policymakers can use to influence housing markets and how some these policy issues are incorporated in the empirical frameworks used to model the housing market.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:

MLO9.1   Explain in detail the different determinants of housing supply and demand.
MLO9.2   Explain how models of house prices and the house price to rent ratio are derived
MLO9.3   Discuss the empirical implementation of these models
MLO9.4   Use these models to assess the sustainability or otherwise of the housing market
MLO9.5 Illustrate how the provision of credit can impact the housing market
MLO9.6   Describe how key policy levers such as macroprudential policy can be assessed in an empirical framework

Module Assessment

Project [40%]: It will involve a practical application of material studied during the module.
Final Examination [60%]: It will test critical understanding and appropriate application of topics covered in the module.