Valuing Forest Amenities : assessing the effect of non-market amenities on real estate prices

Sammanfattning: Quantitative information on residents' valuations attached to forests is needed for assessing land use, city planning, and the development of policies for forest preservation. This paper aims to value implicitly non-market forest amenities by estimating real estate housing prices and specific amounts of environmental amenities associated with recreational houses, specifically forest types. The empirical study is based on data from the sales of recreational houses in the county of Hässleholm in Sweden from 2018 to 2021. Two different models were used in this research, focusing on both global and local estimates. Proximity to pine forests, arable land, and bodies of water displayed significant effects on prices for recreational houses. The results suggest that individuals value natural amenities differently. Pine trees are seen as a disamenity that brings down the price of houses while proximity to both water and arable land affects prices positively. The model focusing on global estimates explains more efficiently the changes in prices in the housing market. It is recommended to consider more information about the real estate market structure and non-marker amenities to fully exploit the explanatory potential of local estimates.