Hedonic Prices and House Numbers: The Influence of Feng Shui

Steven C. Bourassa and Vincent S. Peng's study on hedonic prices and house numbers examining feng shui's influence is a peer-reviewed economics paper applying statistical hedonic pricing methods to real estate data to test whether numerological associations tied to feng shui, particularly numbers considered lucky or unlucky, measurably affect sale prices. Its strength is the empirical, quantitative method, letting the authors report a specific, testable market effect rather than an anecdotal impression. As a study of one housing market's price data, its finding demonstrates that buyers in that market act on feng shui numerological belief, a fact about market behavior and cultural practice, not an assessment of feng shui's own cosmological claims, which the paper does not attempt to evaluate.