This paper asks whether, and under which circumstances, rent subsidies to low-income households increase rents. We utilize a reform in Finland that caused large quasi-random variation in housing allowances. We find that large increases in allowances for affected housing units had little or no...

This paper analyzes the relative merits of large place- and tenant-based housing programs in Finland in terms of housing affordability and neighborhood quality. Using hedonic regression methods and household micro data, we find that rent savings to public housing tenants are less targeted...