The Political Economy of Cities

Undergraduate / Graduate

The course introduces students to the latest scholarship on the political economy of cities and metropolitan areas. We will focus on a few basic concepts of urban political economy (e.g., externalities, agglomeration, fragmentation, sorting), and explore how the interaction of economic forces and political institutions forms the foundation of many current policy challenges facing cities. We analyze the sources of urban growth, the institutions of local government and their role in the federal system, competition among cities, and the importance of real estate markets in shaping local politics.