The Impact of Upgrading Municipal Infrastructure on Property Prices: Evidence from Brazil

We evaluate the effects of municipal infrastructure upgrades on property prices in the Municipality of Campo Grande, Brazil. Using detailed administrative data on property characteristics and sales prices, we implement a differences-in-differences methodology that compares treated and comparison neighborhoods over time to estimate the effects of road infrastructure improvements and revitalization of urban parks. We find that road improvements are highly cost-effective, producing an increase of 6.1% in property prices which translate into a return of $4.25 per dollar invested. On the other hand, we find no effects of the urban parks intervention.