New Study on Housing Foreclosures and School Mobility

A new IESP-Furman study examines the effect of home foreclosures on student mobility, finding that the foreclosure crisis resulted in affected students switching schools more often than they would have otherwise, and, on average, to schools with academically weaker peers. Overall, the results suggest that foreclosures may negatively affect the academic performance of students living in foreclosed buildings and put additional strain on public schools already facing budget cuts and fiscal constraints.

The study, "Does Losing Your Home Mean Losing Your School? Effects of Foreclosures on School Mobility of Children," by V. Been, I. Ellen, A. Schwartz, L. Stiefel, and M. Weinstein, is published in the Journal of Regional Science and Urban Economics.