Jaemin Woo

How does rising political polarization affect who marries whom, and who remains single? This paper uses discrete choice experiments and a transferable-utility matching model to quantify how partisan preferences reshape marriage market sorting and welfare in the United States.

We study fertility in a dynamic spatial equilibrium model with endogenous location and residential choices, alongside investments in children's education. We estimate the model using near-universal administrative microdata from South Korea, drawing on census records, credit bureau data linked to mobile phone mobility records, and government administrative sources. Our estimates indicate that high commuting and housing costs, combined with intensive education investments in large cities, where the amenity of living is large, substantially reduce fertility. We conduct a decomposition exercise to explain the sharp decline in South Korean fertility over the past decade, finding that deteriorating child-rearing amenities and rising education costs play a significant role. Finally, we conduct a series of counterfactual exercises considering place-based policies to reduce commuting costs, increase housing supply, or lower education costs. We find that policies focusing exclusively on large cities, such as Seoul, may have the opposite effect on fertility than intended due to spatial sorting. However, a combination of nationwide policies targeting the fertility margin directly can boost fertility significantly.