Fairness of the first-come, first-served rule on the rental housing market: Insights from a hypothetical survey experiment

Echoing recent policies implemented in Seattle and Portland, we examine perceptions of the fairness of the first-come, first-served (FCFS) rule in the context of discrimination in the rental housing market. To do so, we use an original hypothetical survey experiment in which a rental agent is confronted with the discriminatory preferences of his landlord customers. A sample of 2,835 respondents representative of the US population was asked about which choice was the best, from a moral point of view: to allocate rental units exclusively to whichever group applied first (FCFS rule), to the other group or 50/50 to both groups. In two separate experiments, we manipulated (i) the order of arrival of the discriminated and non-discriminated groups, (ii) the income impact of implementing the FCFS rule for the rental agent, who risks losing landlord customers if they rent to the discriminated group, (iii) peer effects, i.e., what other rental agents do and (iv) social norms shared by all members of the community. Consistent with the literature, we find that the order of tenant arrival affects respondents’ normative preferences, and that, second to the 50/50 rule, the FCFS rule is well-received by respondents. Additionally, income, peer influence and social norms all causally impact the level of support for the FCFS rule among respondents. Finally, respondents who are more likely to experience economic hardship and belong to the dominant group in their neighbourhood are the least likely to support the FCFS rule.