Jingzhou Wang, a graduate student in the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology and Education at Penn State, will give the talk "Flood Risk and Housing Markets without Flood Insurance: Evidence from 1930s Pittsburgh," at noon on Wednesday, Sept. 9, in 157 Hosler Building on Penn State's University Park campus.
The event is part of a fall seminar series hosted by the Initiative for Energy and Environmental Economics and Policy (EEEPI). The talk is free and open to the public.
In March 1936, Pittsburgh experienced the worst flood in its history when water levels peaked at 46 feet. The flood, known as "The Great St. Patrick's Day Flood," caused devastating damage to Pittsburgh and affected larger areas of the mid-Atlantic region.
"This paper builds on a logic of repeat-sales framework to evaluate the impact of the 1936 St. Patrick's Day flood on housing market outcomes in Pittsburgh," Wang said.
Results reveal that housing values for both homeowners and renters decreased by 3.63% in affected areas with total losses equivalent to roughly $1.4 million today, adjusting for inflation.
"We found evidence that homeowners recognized flood risk on a broad geographic scale but lacked precise knowledge of flood hazards," Wang said. "In contrast, we find little evidence of flood-risk capitalization in the rental market, suggesting that renters were less responsive to flood hazards."
Wang is a doctoral candidate in energy, environmental and food economics. His research interests center on the intersection of environmental economics and economic history, with a particular focus on the effects of historical flood events on housing markets and migration. He received his master of science in economics from China University of Petroleum-Beijing and his bachelor of science in economics from Dongbei University of Finance and Economics.
About EEEPI
Established in 2011, EEEPI operates as a University-wide initiative at Penn State with support from the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute and the Institute of Energy and the Environment. EEEPI seeks to catalyze research in energy and environmental systems economics across the University and to build a world-class group of economists with interests in interdisciplinary collaboration.
