Papers on Disruptions in Property Rights and Performance in Residential Real Estate Assets and Non-profit Organizations

Theories in law, finance, and economics make a variety of predictions linking property rights to more complete capital markets, improved firm performance, reduced risk, improved worker outcomes, and higher asset prices. Reliably testing these predictions is critical, and properly identified models can help resolve the disputes among these theoretical literatures. I use three empirical settings to identify the effects of reduced property protections: when state government lowers protections for residential real estate owners by making squatting on property easier, when state government forbids evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, and when criminal actors deprive unsuspecting non-profits of significant amounts of property. In all three instances, theories in economics and finance differ on the potential outcomes for stakeholders. My research shows that the impact is decidedly negative for residential real estate owners, landlords, and nonprofits when they experience tampering with their respective property rights.