Cal-de-sac Feng Shui

Examine the Residential Property Values in Cul-de-sac: A Case Study of Feng Shui in Harris County, Texas

By Qisheng Pan, Ph.D. (1), C.C. Lee, AIA, LEED AP, AMDP (2), and Tony Jin (1)

  1. Department of Urban Planning and Environmental Policy, Texas Southern University, 3100 Cleburne St. Houston, TX 77004
  2. The STOA Foundation, 6001 Savoy Dr., Suite 100, Houston, TX 77036
From Qi Strength Viewpoint (1 – Better 2 – Good 3 – Worst 4 – Worse 5 – Bad)

Abstract
Feng Shui, known as Chinese geomancy, reflects the relationship between human beings and the natural environment. As an essential component of culture and tradition in China and East Asian countries, it has played an important role in shaping society and personal life. However, the effects of Feng Shui have been rarely quantified in rigorous studies. This research intends to explore the relationship between Feng Shui and residential properties in North American settings. It employs the hedonic pricing models with spatial and statistical analysis functions to examine the impacts of Feng Shui concepts, especially the cul-de-sac (dead-end), on residential property values. In this paper, the researchers explore the correlation between the location of residential properties and property values in the Greater Houston, Texas region. It is found that houses located at the optimal location in a cul-de-sac have the highest value while those located at the T-Junction have lower values. The empirical study reports that the effects of the spatial arrangement of properties are consistent with the Feng Shui theory.

Introduction
Feng Shui, or “wind water,” means two of earth’s flowing elements. It represents the process of maximizing the flow of energy to achieve harmony between people, buildings and nature. The concepts of Feng Shui have deeply rooted in the minds of many Chinese people and influenced traditional architecture, designs, and planning in China and many East Asian communities for thousands of years. The principles and practices of Feng Shui aim to develop a harmonized built environment for people to live in. It aims to select favorable locations, as well as a theory for designing cities and buildings (Lee, 1986).

The relationship between humans and their environment guided by the concepts of Feng Shui dominates personal life in all aspects, including fate, luck, virtue, and education, etc. It is considered as the art of living in harmony with the land, and deriving the greatest benefit, peace, and prosperity from being in the right place at the right time (Skinner 1982). Therefore, the spatial arrangement of the properties in a community may generate different benefits to the households, which may be reflected in their property values.

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