The Impact of Natural Amenities on Home Values in Western Colorado

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact that proximity to natural amenities has on improving home values in Mesa County, Colorado. Controlling for standard home characteristics, the study investigates the value to homes of the proximity to trails, the Colorado National Monument, Bureau of Land Management Land, golf courses, the Colorado/Gunnison River, open space, and public parks, using ordinary least squares, fixed effects (controlling for time and zip codes), and a spatial error model. GIS is used to determine distances for the spatial econometric model. Each amenity is evaluated at 250, 500, and 1000 meters. The results show that homes located within 250 meters of a trail sell for 4.45% more, homes located within 500 meters of BLM land sell for 9.07% more, homes located within 250 meters of a golf course sell for 12.70% more, and homes located within 250 meters of the Colorado National Monument sell for 12.90% more.