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Spatial Disparities in Housing Values in the United States During the Great Depression: A Place-Based Sustainability Perspective

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Spatial disparities in housing values during the Great Depression reflect not only regional housing market conditions but also deeper inequalities in economic opportunity, social infrastructure, and environmental resilience that are central to place-based sustainability. Despite extensive research on housing inequality during this period, spatial disparities in housing values—particularly in relation to race beyond the neighborhood level—remain underexplored. This study examines county-level spatial disparities in housing values in the United States between 1930 and 1940, framing housing values as an indicator of place-based sustainability. Using spatial visualization, global and local spatial econometric models, and Multi-Scale Geographically Weighted Regression (MGWR), we analyze how economic shocks, environmental stressors, and socioeconomic and demographic factors jointly shaped uneven housing outcomes across space. Our findings reveal distinct regional trends: higher housing values were concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest, and West Coast, while lower values prevailed in the Mountain and Southern regions. Housing values declined from 1930 to 1940, with the Dust Bowl intensifying losses in affected areas. Socioeconomic factors, such as higher illiteracy and unemployment rates, were associated with lower housing values, whereas higher retail sales per capita, a proxy for income, were linked to higher values. Housing values also varied significantly by racial and nativity composition, with persistent disparities disadvantaging Black and other minority populations relative to native White populations within the same regions. By quantifying spatial inequality and identifying uneven regional vulnerability and resilience during a major historical crisis, this study contributes a place-based sustainability perspective on long-term housing inequality and its structural roots.

Source: Sustainability

DOI: 10.3390/su18031500

Authors: Xinba Li, Chuanrong Zhang

Institutions: Vanderbilt University, University of Connecticut

Language: English

Topic: Housing Market and Economics

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,896