Thread by @AaronChalfin

Nuisance property ordinances deputize landlords to internalize public safety externalities. But are there unintended consequences? @AriaGoles finds that NuPOs reduce the rate at which domestic violence is reported and may increase domestic homicides.👇
ariagolestani.io/wp-content/upl…

NuPOs recognize that place managers are sometimes better situated than law enforcement to address public safety issues that have ties to specific properties. There is a great deal of writing about this especially by John Eck. See e.g., oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/o…

But a concern is that NuPOs may incentivize landlords to retaliate against tenants who report crimes to law enforcement, thus raising the cost of crime reporting. This is especially worrisome for domestic violence where the cost of reporting is already high.

Aria considers what happens to domestic assaults when NuPOs are passed and finds that NuPOs reduce the rate at which residential violence is reported to police (panel A) but not the rate of reporting non-residential assaults (panel B).

Aria also finds that 911 calls for domestic violence decrease after passage of a NuPO.

How about domestic homicides? There is some evidence that these rise after passage of a NuPO (panel A). Effects are less clear for other types of homicides (panel B).

In some cases, landlords will be able to abate crime more efficiently than police. But this paper suggests that policymakers should think carefully about the tradeoffs when passing NuPOs. NuPOs may have fewer unintended consequences in commercial than residential settings.

Aria is an Econ job market candidate at UC Irvine where he is advised by @ProfEmilyOwens, @kerri_raissian, Matthew Freedman and Damon Clark. Learn more about Aria's research here: ariagolestani.io