The effect of amateur sport clubs on the value of properties: Empirical evidence from Rotterdam and Amsterdam

In this paper we researched the effect of amateur sports clubs on the value of properties. This research is based on data of the two biggest municipalities in the Netherlands, Rotterdam and Amsterdam. Using a hedonic regression model, we studied multiple pathways through which sport can influence house prices. Several distance buffers, diversity in supply of sports and types of sports have been researched. Based on our models, we found partial evidence of sport clubs having a negative effect on house prices. We suggest that this is caused by high correlations with land prices and reverse causality. Especially since as the distance buffer decreases, this effect becomes more negative. Effects on diversity are also mixed, it seems to have a positive effect in Rotterdam and a negative effect in Amsterdam. The analysis of types of sports was inconclusive, but we found partial proof that outdoor sport clubs are perceived as a positive amenity, while indoor sport clubs are not. The analysis shows strong indication of endogeneity, which potentially can be solved by a longitudinal approach using quasi-experimental data, which is the main recommendation for future research.