Points of Interest and Housing Prices

Points of Interest (POI) are an inherent element of the urban landscape, and their number and density reflect, among other things, the degree of urbanization and the city’s spatial structure. The very presence of POI in the closest vicinity of a residential property may indirectly or directly affect housing value. This paper aims to demonstrate the usefulness of POI density information of different categories in assessing the quality of a property’s immediate surroundings. While the mere presence of POIs in the nearest neighborhood may affect real estate prices, the influence of specific categories may not necessarily be positive. Therefore, the study attempted to classify POIs and determine their importance in the price formation process using spatial regression models. The results indicate that a high density of POIs in the immediate area is a stimulant for housing prices. The detailed analysis indicated that only some POI categories might be related to transaction prices, while in certain situations, some POI categories may negatively impact prices.