He obtained his Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University and his B.A. and M.A. from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM). Before taking up his position at the University of Toronto, he did a post-doctorate at the University of California-Berkeley. His research interests are in Development Economics and Urban Economics. He has published work related to the effects of land titles, spatial crime externalities, and effects of infrastructure among the urban poor.