Ethnic differences behind home price disparities in a Midsize city: The city of Akko, Israel as a case study

The study focuses on intra-urban disparities in home prices in the city of Akko in Israel, historically divided into the section with a Jewish majority, the section with an Arab majority, and the ethnically mixed enclave. The sale prices of comparable properties in different parts of the city are found to fluctuate more than four- to fivefold. We attribute these trends to ethnic and socioeconomic status differences, creating forces of attraction and aversion among different population groups. The knowledge about the effect of ethnic differences on housing prices is considered to be important due to the increasing ethnic diversity of cities worldwide.