Panel Data in Housing Research: A Reaction to the Paper by Myers on Cohort Longitudinal Estimation of Housing Careers

Both cross-sectional and panel data can be used to analyse the dynamics of housing markets over time. Myers proposes the method of longitudinal cohort analysis of repeated cross-sectional data for the study of trends in housing market circumstances. He emphasises the problems and limitations of the use of panel data for such purposes. In this article it is argued that Myers underestimates the potentials of panel data for the study of housing market dynamics over time. Panel data are now relatively easy to obtain and use, also for the analysis of long-term changes in housing markets. Prices and turnover rates in housing markets have been shown to be strongly auto-correlated across geographical space. Therefore, panel data can be used to analyse regional differences in housing markets, even if these data have a relatively small sample size.