The study, "The Value of Neighborhood and Property Tree Canopy Across Different Property Values for Residential Resales in San Antonio, Texas," authored by Ryun Jung Lee from the School of Architecture and Planning and Thomas A. Thomson from the Department of Finance at The University of Texas, San Antonio, examines how tree canopies influence residential property values. The research centers on San Antonio, Texas, a city known as "Tree City USA" for its efforts in tree preservation and care. The authors seek to fill gaps in existing research by analyzing the economic benefits of tree canopy in homes and neighborhoods across areas with different property values.
The study uses data from about 41,500 home sales in San Antonio between January 2015 and May 2019, combined with 2017 LiDAR data on tree canopy at a one-meter resolution. The researchers used a semi-log hedonic pricing model to estimate the value of tree canopy, controlling for factors such as lot size, home size, build quality, and neighborhood tree canopy percentage. The city was divided into four zones based on average house prices, with tree canopy measured at both property and neighborhood levels. The analysis included nine indicator variables to capture how property and neighborhood tree canopy interact. Results show that tree canopy generally adds value to residential properties, but the effect varies by area.
In urban neighborhoods, both low and high tree canopy coverage can decrease property values, while in suburban neighborhoods, more tree canopy, especially at the neighborhood level, significantly increases property values. For instance, in the highest-value area, low property specific tree canopy combined with low neighborhood tree canopy can reduce property values by up to 8%, whereas high neighborhood canopy can boost values by 4-6%. The study concludes that tree canopy can increase property values, especially in urban areas, and recommends that municipalities focus on expanding neighborhood tree cover, particularly in development areas, to generate broader community benefits. It also emphasizes the importance of tree quality and maintenance, especially in transitional neighborhoods, and calls for further research to determine the optimal level of tree canopy that balances benefits while preventing potential downsides like gentrification.
Lee, Ryun Jung, and Thomas A. Thomson. " The Value of Neighborhood and Property Tree Canopy Across Different Property Values for Residential Resales in San Antonio, Texas." Journal of Sustainable Real Estate 17, no. 1 (2025): 2461833. https://doi.org/10.1080/19498276.2025.2461833.