Housing Tax and Transfer Programs Decrease Inequality

beSpacific 2015-08-28

Gregory Acs and Paul Johnson, Urban Institute. August 18, 2015: “We examine the relationships between housing subsidies, the mortgage interest and real estate tax deductions, and income inequality and find that housing subsidies to low-income families reduce income inequality while the mortgage interest and real estate tax deductions increase it. On net, the distribution of post-tax, post-transfer income is slightly more equal than it would be in the absence of these three programs.”