A new study has found that home values increase following the legalization of recreational marijuana.
“Something interesting that we noted was that the type of legalization actually had a huge impact,” Michelle Delgado of Clever Real Estate told KOB4 News. “So states that legalized recreational marijuana saw much bigger jumps in home values than states that only legalized medicinal marijuana or states that didn’t legalize it at all.”
Colorado home values went up $89,377 from 2017 to 2021. Arizona’s increased $80,558. In Texas, where recreational marijuana is not legal, home values increased $40,457 during the same time span.
“We found that if marijuana had been legal during those year, home values would have likely risen almost $53,000,” Delgado stated.
Researchers found more cannabis tax revenues funded more state programs such as education and health care. It also brought in more tourists and more business opportunities.
“This may be good for people who already own a home, but as home values increase, it’ll be something to watch, to see if this continues to make housing unaffordable for others,” Delgado said.