The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta just released a white paper on “VPROs” titled, “Foreclosure Externalities and Vacant Property Registration Ordinances”
Not surprisingly the study showed positive outcomes from the implementation of a vacant property registration ordinance.
From the abstract;
“This paper tests the effectiveness of vacant property registration ordinances (VPROs) in reducing negative externalities from foreclosures………………..and we find that the enactment of VPROs in Florida more than halved the negative externality from foreclosure.”
From the last section of the paper;
“Given that VPROs had relatively little enforcement cost, indeed they raised revenue for the city, they seem a relatively efficacious way to directly address the foreclosure externalities arising from any future downturn in housing markets. Certainly compared to other interventions like the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) that attempted to forestall bank initiated foreclosures (and their spillovers) via costly inducements to banks, VPROs appear to be highly cost effective.”
To view the white paper, please click here.