The Digital Press

The Philadelphia Fed's Historical Housing Prices Project provides comprehensive data on U.S. housing prices and rental returns from 1890 to 2006, using historical newspaper listings across 30 major cities. This expanded dataset helps researchers and policymakers understand long-term housing market trends and their economic impacts.

Why it matters: It fills gaps in long-run housing price data, crucial for studying economic well-being and wealth-building linked to housing.

The big picture: The project supports research on regional economics and housing policy by digitizing and analyzing historical real estate data nationwide.

Stunning stat: Data covers over a century (1890–2006) and includes both housing for sale and rental return indices for 30 major U.S. cities.

Commenters say: Many find the rental price declines in some cities surprising, sparking discussion about regional housing market dynamics.