The economic value of urban landscapes in a suburban city of Tokyo, Japan: A semantic segmentation approach using Google Street View images

Figures & data

Figure 1. Methodological flow.

Table 1. Summary statistics.

(a) Property characteristics
	Mean			S.D.
Dependent variable
Price [10,000 JPY]	2466.3			1115.9
Building characteristics
Newly built	0.250
Age [years]	17.5			14.4
Floor area [m^2]	107.3			27.9
Non-timbered	0.109
Land characteristics
Land area [m^2]	169.1			63.2
Walking time to station [min]	5.9			7.4
Bus to station	0.530
With parking space	0.755
Distance to junior high school [km]	0.777			0.401
Floor-area ratio (FAR) [%]	75.638			13.823
Front road width
Less than 4 m	0.034
4–5 m	0.179
5–6 m	0.196
6–7 m	0.254
7–10 m	0.053
10 m or more	0.093
Unknown	0.193
Land use within 500 m radius [ratio]
High-rise building	0.020			0.038
Dense low-rise building	0.021			0.081
Low-rise building	0.630			0.168
Vacant land	0.016			0.030
Park and green	0.005			0.014
Farmland	0.035			0.057
Number of observations	800
(b) Urban landscape index created through sematic segmentation of the Google Street View images
Variable	Mean		Min		Max
	Mean	S.D.	Mean	S.D.	Mean	S.D.
Vegetation	0.108	0.080			0.236	0.170
Sky	0.237	0.059			0.346	0.053
Building	0.200	0.088	0.068	0.059
Building + Wall + Fence	0.348	0.102
Pole	0.007	0.006			0.027	0.025
Sidewalk	0.029	0.023			0.094	0.057
Sidewalk + Car	0.042	0.030
Terrain	0.025	0.039			0.091	0.120

Figure 2. Examples of original images and semantic segmentation.The right-hand squares show the pixel ratios of each landscape component within the images.

Figure 3. 12 views (every 30 degrees) for the typical residential areas shown in Figure 2(a).

Table 2. Percentage of each landscape component for the 12 views of the typical residential areas shown in Figure 2(a).

Number	Vegetation	Sky	Building	Building + Wall + Fence	Pole	Sidewalk	Sidewalk + Car	Terrain
1	11.64	28.21	13.79	27.72	1.52	1.60	1.60	0.02
2	8.21	28.97	18.60	22.39	0.11	2.03	13.57	0.61
3	8.68	22.79	37.28	46.83	0.00	3.60	11.02	0.13
4	3.91	14.91	32.74	56.26	0.00	0.12	11.02	9.30
5	6.93	12.58	63.58	69.44	0.00	1.19	1.19	0.07
6	2.80	16.42	39.39	45.55	0.24	0.00	0.00	0.00
7	2.89	26.12	31.07	39.09	0.16	1.15	1.15	0.00
8	3.51	26.35	17.30	38.31	0.33	1.31	1.31	0.00
9	0.75	16.91	33.18	58.58	0.00	2.29	2.29	0.00
10	2.51	7.66	45.78	74.20	0.00	0.16	0.16	0.00
11	9.47	12.92	33.16	55.71	1.55	0.55	0.55	0.00
12	8.78	26.48	20.04	33.53	1.17	0.82	0.82	0.04
Mean	5.84	20.03	32.16	47.30	0.42	1.24	3.72	0.85
Min	0.75	7.66	13.79	22.39	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
Max	11.64	28.97	63.58	74.20	1.55	3.60	13.57	9.30

In the hedonic regression analysis, aggregated proportions of the 12 views (shown in bold) are employed.

Table 3. Hypotheses regarding correlations between the urban landscape index and property price.

Landscape element	Urban landscape index	Summary statistics	Expected correlation with property price
Greenery	Vegetation	Mean (Max)	+ (Comfortable environment with abundant greenery and plantings)
Openness	Sky	Mean (Max)	+ (Sufficient sunlight in the community)
Visual enclosure	Building (+ Wall + Fence)	Mean (Min)	+ (Matured residential area with a certain level of enclosure by buildings)
Power pole	Pole	Mean (Max)	‐ (Messy Landscape characterized by electrical wires) or 0 (Common urban landscape in Japan)
Road shoulder	Sidewalk (+ Car)	Mean (Max)	? (Loss of continuity of buildings or visual enclosures; Enhance openness; Common urban landscape in Japan)
Farmland	Terrain	Mean (Max)	? (Loss of continuity of buildings or visual enclosures; Enhance openness; Common urban landscape in Japan)

Table 4. Correlations between urban landscape index and property price.

Measuring:		Locational proxy		District-level landscape		Street-level landscape
		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)
Urban landscape index
Vegetation (Mean)			0.6469***		0.5866***		0.3454*
			(0.1924)		(0.1892)		(0.2018)
Sky (Mean)			0.9836***		0.9684***		1.0541***
			(0.2866)		(0.2957)		(0.2905)
Building (Mean)			0.2578		0.2528		0.5360***
			(0.1743)		(0.1750)		(0.1980)
Pole (Mean)			−3.6017*		−3.4615*		−1.2807
			(1.9449)		(1.7929)		(1.8650)
Sidewalk (Mean)			1.3820***		0.7494		0.1757
			(0.5338)		(0.5243)		(0.5769)
Terrain (Mean)			−0.4643		−0.2295		−0.0182
			(0.3085)		(0.2788)		(0.2567)
Building characteristics
Newly built		0.0114	0.0111	0.0644*	0.0578	0.1072***	0.1038***
		(0.0337)	(0.0351)	(0.0350)	(0.0360)	(0.0346)	(0.0345)
Age [years]		−0.0180***	−0.0180***	−0.0169***	−0.0170***	−0.0169***	−0.0167***
		(0.0013)	(0.0013)	(0.0013)	(0.0013)	(0.0013)	(0.0012)
Floor area [m^2]		0.0064***	0.0063***	0.0051***	0.0050***	0.0041***	0.0041***
		(0.0007)	(0.0007)	(0.0007)	(0.0007)	(0.0007)	(0.0007)
Non-timbered				0.0384	0.0395	0.0415	0.0437
				(0.0418)	(0.0413)	(0.0413)	(0.0408)
Land characteristics
Land area [m^2]		0.0019***	0.0017***	0.0019***	0.0018***	0.0017***	0.0016***
		(0.0004)	(0.0004)	(0.0004)	(0.0004)	(0.0004)	(0.0004)
Walking time to station [min]		−0.0130***	−0.0139***	−0.0157***	−0.0162***	−0.0098***	−0.0095***
		(0.0028)	(0.0027)	(0.0030)	(0.0030)	(0.0037)	(0.0035)
Bus to station		−0.5044***	−0.5210***	−0.4926***	−0.5077***	−0.2076***	−0.2138***
		(0.0396)	(0.0389)	(0.0449)	(0.0459)	(0.0792)	(0.0751)
With parking space				0.0474*	0.0462*	0.0462*	0.0491*
				(0.0280)	(0.0280)	(0.0254)	(0.0250)
Distance to junior high school [km]				−0.1268***	−0.1238***	−0.0099	−0.0238
				(0.0277)	(0.0278)	(0.0558)	(0.0544)
Floor-area ratio (FAR) [%]				−0.0010	−0.0011	0.0018*	0.0015
				(0.0008)	(0.0008)	(0.0010)	(0.0009)
Front road width
Less than 4 m				−0.1234**	−0.1421***	−0.1656***	−0.1651***
				(0.0515)	(0.0549)	(0.0546)	(0.0581)
4–5 m				−0.1595***	−0.1614***	−0.1363***	−0.1430***
				(0.0350)	(0.0355)	(0.0340)	(0.0345)
5–6 m				(reference)	(reference)	(reference)	(reference)
6–7 m				0.0433	0.0344	−0.0213	−0.0265
				(0.0280)	(0.0277)	(0.0291)	(0.0285)
7–10 m				0.0352	0.0099	0.0082	−0.0062
				(0.0481)	(0.0469)	(0.0492)	(0.0475)
10 m or more				0.0217	−0.0091	−0.0276	−0.0394
				(0.0487)	(0.0482)	(0.0488)	(0.0456)
Unknown				−0.0357	−0.0370	−0.0606*	−0.0579*
				(0.0343)	(0.0340)	(0.0337)	(0.0328)
Land use within 500 m radius [ratio]
High-rise building				0.3648	0.2703	0.3789	0.1972
				(0.2777)	(0.2817)	(0.5165)	(0.5177)
Dense low-rise building				0.4992***	0.5111***	0.5392*	0.2361
				(0.1279)	(0.1322)	(0.2855)	(0.2908)
Low-rise building				0.1109	0.0854	0.1773	0.1054
				(0.0789)	(0.0844)	(0.1200)	(0.1198)
Vacant land				0.9247***	0.7879***	0.1512	−0.0726
				(0.3043)	(0.2929)	(0.5705)	(0.5676)
Park and green				2.9514***	2.3671***	−1.0923	−1.3626
				(0.7220)	(0.7411)	(1.0142)	(1.0067)
Farmland				−0.2368	−0.3831**	0.0651	−0.0975
				(0.1917)	(0.1836)	(0.2975)	(0.2872)
Constant		7.3556***	7.0257***	7.5285***	7.2457***	7.2960***	6.9458***
		(0.0799)	(0.1387)	(0.1272)	(0.1528)	(0.1989)	(0.2100)
Time fixed effect (quarterly)		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
District fixed effect						Yes	Yes
Number of observations		800	800	800	800	800	800
R^2		0.635	0.652	0.695	0.705	0.794	0.801
Adjusted R^2		0.624	0.638	0.678	0.687	0.751	0.757

The dependent variable is the log of the transaction price. White-corrected robust standard errors are in parentheses. Significance level: *** p < 0.01, ** p < 0.05, * p < 0.1.

Table 5. Subsample analysis of land use type.

Sample:		Entire area		Other residential area		Loosely regulated area
Measuring:		District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape
		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)
Urban landscape index
	Vegetation (Mean)	0.4505***	0.1060	0.2889	0.1646	0.1436	−0.0573
		(0.1582)	(0.1695)	(0.3808)	(0.4132)	(0.5192)	(0.6095)
	Sky (Mean)	0.6148***	0.7087***	0.3485	0.4885	0.0111	0.4896
		(0.2009)	(0.2046)	(0.4133)	(0.5209)	(0.5656)	(0.8693)
	Building (Mean)	0.1893	0.3214**	−0.0310	0.5410	0.3167	0.3383
		(0.1392)	(0.1497)	(0.3956)	(0.4030)	(0.3864)	(0.5824)
	Pole (Mean)	−1.5049	0.0444	1.6424	7.8979	2.9837	3.9114
		(1.3403)	(1.5129)	(3.5051)	(5.9158)	(2.6071)	(4.2802)
	Sidewalk (Mean)	0.3459	−0.0141	−0.1771	1.6259	−0.3943	−1.2080
		(0.4646)	(0.4866)	(0.9767)	(1.2077)	(1.2012)	(1.8886)
	Terrain (Mean)	−0.4776*	−0.1830	−0.8464**	0.1083	−0.6307	−0.6099
		(0.2498)	(0.2389)	(0.4156)	(0.4695)	(0.5149)	(0.9942)
Building characteristics, Land characteristics, Land use within 500 m radius, Zoning category, Time fixed effect (quarterly) and a Constant		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
District fixed effect			Yes		Yes		Yes
Number of observations		1307	1307	297	297	210	210
R^2		0.699	0.795	0.742	0.894	0.756	0.875
Adjusted R^2		0.686	0.757	0.693	0.806	0.684	0.748

The dependent variable is the log of the transaction price. White-corrected robust standard errors are in parentheses. Significance level: *** p < 0.01, ** p < 0.05, * p < 0.1.

Table 6. Robustness checks.

(a) Greenery, openness and visual enclosure
Measuring:		District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape
		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)	(7)	(8)
Urban landscape index
Alternative indicator
	Vegetation (Max)	0.2312***	0.1781**
		(0.0842)	(0.0886)
	Sky (Max)			0.6096**	0.7201***
				(0.2603)	(0.2541)
	Building (Min)					0.3150	0.6047**
						(0.2181)	(0.2417)
	Building + Wall + Fence (Mean)							0.1377	−0.1104
								(0.2400)	(0.2400)
Baseline indicator
	Vegetation (Mean)			0.3657**	0.1219	0.5445***	0.2394	0.5503**	−0.0936
				(0.1728)	(0.1735)	(0.1727)	(0.1798)	(0.2614)	(0.2682)
	Sky (Mean)	0.8598***	1.0606***			0.8706***	0.8275***	0.9398**	0.4881
		(0.2905)	(0.2782)			(0.2695)	(0.2515)	(0.3971)	(0.3722)
	Building (Mean)	0.1612	0.5294***	0.0390	0.3121*
		(0.1663)	(0.1850)	(0.1556)	(0.1615)
	Pole (Mean)	−3.6499**	−1.2459	−3.1002*	−0.9070	−3.7286**	−2.0014	−3.4045*	−1.7044
		(1.7957)	(1.8669)	(1.7543)	(1.8524)	(1.8196)	(1.9027)	(1.7803)	(1.8727)
	Sidewalk (Mean)	0.7678	0.1951	0.9873*	0.4614	0.7256	0.1422	0.9189*	0.1610
		(0.5217)	(0.5753)	(0.5092)	(0.5609)	(0.5280)	(0.5842)	(0.5239)	(0.5981)
	Terrain (Mean)	−0.2364	−0.0334	−0.2364	−0.0302	−0.1958	0.0276	−0.1925	−0.1518
		(0.2756)	(0.2545)	(0.2780)	(0.2637)	(0.2894)	(0.2712)	(0.2981)	(0.2826)
Building characteristics, Land characteristics, Land use within 500 m radius, Time fixed effect (quarterly) and a Constant		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
District fixed effect			Yes		Yes		Yes		Yes
Number of observations		800	800	800	800	800	800	800	800
R^2		0.705	0.801	0.702	0.798	0.705	0.800	0.704	0.798
Adjusted R^2		0.686	0.758	0.683	0.754	0.687	0.756	0.686	0.753
(b) Power pole, road shoulder, and farmland
Measuring:		District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape	District-level landscape	Street-level landscape
		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)	(7)	(8)
Urban landscape index
Alternative indicator
	Pole (Max)	−0.7583*	−0.3847
		(0.4217)	(0.4510)
	Sidewalk (Max)			0.1081	0.0442
				(0.1977)	(0.2030)
	Sidewalk + Car (Mean)					0.5241	0.2099
						(0.3816)	(0.3497)
	Terrain (Max)							−0.0931	0.0017
								(0.0954)	(0.0906)
Baseline indicator
	Vegetation (Mean)	0.5967***	0.3453*	0.5783***	0.3434*	0.5965***	0.3532*	0.6010***	0.3439*
		(0.1890)	(0.2019)	(0.1896)	(0.2017)	(0.1893)	(0.2009)	(0.1911)	(0.2038)
	Sky (Mean)	0.9552***	1.0531***	0.9987***	1.0584***	0.9716***	1.0473***	0.9759***	1.0524***
		(0.2928)	(0.2890)	(0.2903)	(0.2874)	(0.2941)	(0.2852)	(0.2945)	(0.2903)
	Building (Mean)	0.2565	0.5360***	0.2601	0.5369***	0.2413	0.5285***	0.2530	0.5372***
		(0.1747)	(0.1980)	(0.1751)	(0.1987)	(0.1757)	(0.1992)	(0.1746)	(0.1981)
	Pole (Mean)			−3.6663**	−1.2998	−3.5458**	−1.2658	−3.3911*	−1.2803
				(1.7483)	(1.8453)	(1.7694)	(1.8492)	(1.7998)	(1.8701)
	Sidewalk (Mean)	0.7509	0.1687					0.7269	0.1860
		(0.5234)	(0.5776)					(0.5198)	(0.5726)
	Terrain (Mean)	−0.2359	−0.0189	−0.3090	−0.0290	−0.2540	−0.0110
		(0.2783)	(0.2567)	(0.2780)	(0.2575)	(0.2784)	(0.2635)
Building characteristics, Land characteristics, Land use within 500 m radius, Time fixed effect (quarterly) and a Constant		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
District fixed effect			Yes		Yes		Yes		Yes
Number of observations		800	800	800	800	800	800	800	800
R^2		0.705	0.801	0.704	0.801	0.705	0.801	0.705	0.801
Adjusted R^2		0.686	0.757	0.686	0.757	0.686	0.757	0.687	0.757

The dependent variable is the log of the transaction price. White-corrected robust standard errors are in parentheses. Significance level: *** p < 0.01, ** p < 0.05, * p < 0.1.