The Amenity Value of English Nature: A Hedonic Price Approach

Using a hedonic property price approach, we estimate the amenity value associated with proximity to habitats, designated areas, domestic gardens and other natural amenities in England. There is a long tradition of studies looking at the effect of environmental amenities and disamenities on property prices. But, to our knowledge, this is the first nationwide study of the value of proximity to a large number of natural amenities in England. We analysed 1 million housing transactions over 1996–2008 and considered a large number of environmental characteristics. Results reveal that the effects of many of these environmental variables are highly statistically significant, and are quite large in economic magnitude. Gardens, green space and areas of water within the census ward all attract a considerable positive price premium. There is also a strong positive effect from freshwater and flood plain locations, broadleaved woodland, coniferous woodland and enclosed farmland. Increasing distance to natural amenities such as rivers, National Parks and National Trust sites is unambiguously associated with a fall in house prices. Our preferred regression specifications control for unobserved labour market and other geographical factors using Travel to Work Area fixed effects, and the estimates are fairly insensitive to changes in specification and sample. This provides some reassurance that the hedonic price results provide a useful representation of the values attached to proximity to environmental amenities in England. Overall, we conclude that the housing market in England reveals substantial amenity value attached to a number of habitats, designations, private gardens and local environmental amenities.     

The role of satisfaction in labor diaspora dynamics: An analysis of BREXIT effects

In diaspora research, people's international mobility is often understood as a response to pull-push forces on an economic macro-level or as part of diasporic waves. However, labor diaspora formations are also influenced by micro-level (i.e., individual perceptions) drivers related to work per se, such as satisfaction. This explorative qualitative study takes a novel angle and focuses on the role of Portuguese nurses’ satisfaction with the evaluation of the Brexit scenario and its effects on this labor diaspora's mobility and stability. The findings illustrate that satisfaction, although affected by uncertainty, mainly relates to perceived working conditions and legislation and the possibilities to communicate with locals and other diasporans. This paper provides suggestions for future research and contributes to the development of theory on staying and human stickiness, explaining the dynamics of exit and entry in (re-)migration decision making.     

Reputational recovery under political instability: Public debt in Portugal, 1641–83

This article examines the reputation recovery of Portugal's public debt during the war of liberation against the former Habsburg ruler. Using novel datasets on long- and short-term debt and nominal interest rates, this study provides evidence that the sovereign borrower used debt credibility to build a pact of regime in a revolutionary context with implications for financing the war. The Portuguese kings followed an implicit budget balance rule as a reputational scheme, which made Portugal an exceptional case of military success with a low debt-to-GDP ratio and low interest rates. These conclusions contribute to the literature in various attributes of war finance, debt management, and state-making by showing that default avoidance could be as important to military success as fiscal capacity.