Shrinking and growing metropolitan areas asymmetric real estate price reactions? : The case of German single-family houses

The population of Germany will be one of the first in the western hemisphere to undergo considerable permanent reduction. In view of the relatively low elasticities of supply and demand significant negative price reactions might be expected. This work supplements existing studies by estimating real estate prices at a disaggregated level, for single-family homes in German metropolitan areas. It highlights asymmetric price reactions: growth in population numbers has no significant effect on price, whereas declining population significantly lowered prices.