The housing quality, income, and human capital effects of subsidized homes in urban India

Abstract This paper measures the effects of a subsidized housing lottery in Mumbai, India wherein winners can choose to either live in or rent out the homes. After 3–5 years, winners experience better housing quality, greater reported income, and different attitudes when compared to non-winners. They also have higher education and employment rates, with effects concentrated among youth. This occurs even though winners live in neighborhoods with worse schools and lower employment rates than non-winners at the time of measurement. Overall, effects differ from those of other asset transfers and housing programs requiring relocation. Comparisons with existing studies indicate that the intervention shifts educational attainment and employment at least as much as conditional cash transfers that target these outcomes. The findings suggests that when in-kind transfers can be easily exchanged or sold, their benefits approach those of cash transfers.