Publications

January 2017 (Revised March 2018)
Case

United Housing—Otis Gates

By: Steven Rogers and Mercer Cook

Otis Gates, the only African-American in his HBS graduating class, is an entrepreneur from greater Boston area and has built a successful affordable housing firm. Along the way, he and his partners have contributed countless hours of community service to the... View Details

Keywords: Affordable Housing; Real Estate; Community Engagement; Social-good; Request For Proposal; Diversity; Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Moral Sensibility; Fairness; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Housing; Business and Community Relations; Real Estate Industry

19 Dec 2012
News

Affordable Housing: Israel and the United States

19 Dec 2012
Research & Ideas

Affordable Housing: Israel and the United States

include housing. Returning veterans could not find affordable homes. A condominium costs 12 times annual income; and the country has a dearth of rental units. In Israel, demand for housing outstrips supply—a... View Details

Keywords: by Nicolas P. Retsinas, John H. Vogel & Charles S. Laven; Construction; Real Estate

September 2012 (Revised February 2013)
Case

micro Home Solutions: A Social Housing Initiative in India

By: William R. Kerr and Alexis Brownell

mHS is a social enterprise for the provision of affordable housing in India. After India's microfinance industry collapses, mHS needs to reposition itself for continued operations and long-term growth. View Details

Keywords: India; Loans; Development; Micro Finance; Entrepreneurship; Housing; Social Enterprise; Poverty; India

23 Jan 2008
Op-Ed

A House Divided: Investment or Shelter?

Dictionaries are not static. Some words go unused for so long that lexicographers dub them archaic. Definitions also gravitate to that catch-bin. The plummeting housing market has forced a reevaluation, not just of the financial value of... View Details

Keywords: by Nicolas P. Retsinas; Banking; Construction; Real Estate

February 2024 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Asian Community Development Corporation: Building Housing and Community

By: Michael Chu and Alexis Lefort

Based in Boston’s Chinatown, the Asian Community Development Corporation’s mission was to build affordable homes, empower families, and strengthen communities. The case examines whether ACDC should continue pursuing all three goals or focus on affordable housing. View Details

Keywords: Housing; Mission and Purpose; Nonprofit Organizations; Urban Development; Boston

20 Mar 2000
Research & Ideas

No Place Like Home: America’s Housing Crisis and Its Impact on Business

In many parts of the country, housing costs and shortages have begun to show signs of adversely affecting corporations, workers, and local economies. Affordable housing — such... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Construction; Real Estate

22 Feb 2022
Research & Ideas

When Will the Hot Housing Market Finally Start to Cool?

The United States housing market is tight and expensive and shows no signs of easing. Existing home sales hit a 15-year high in 2021, with 6.12 million sold, a jump of 8.5 percent, according to the National Association of Realtors. Median... View Details

Keywords: by Christine Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette

2008
Working Paper

Investable Tax Credits: The Case of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit

By: Mihir A. Desai, Dhammika Dharmapala and Monica Singhal

The Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) represents a novel tax expenditure program that employs "investable" tax credits to spur production of low-income rental housing. While it has grown into the largest source of new affordable housing in the U.S. and its... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Taxation; Housing; Renting or Rental; United States

Read Now

12 Nov 2014
Op-Ed

A Challenge to the New Congress: Pass Housing Finance Reform

communities. In this new system, there is broad agreement across party lines that we must maintain a commitment to support affordable housing for working families, including funds for low-income rental... View Details

Keywords: by Nicolas Retsinas & Rob Couch; Construction; Real Estate

25 Sep 2019
Blog Post

Video: Tackling the Housing Crisis One Renovation at a Time

Tawan Davis, MBA 2006, Founder and CEO of The Steinbridge Group, along with COO Sacasha Brown, MBA 2006, is defying the odds and creating a positive ripple effect for working class families. Based in Philadelphia and New York, Steinbridge has built a network of... View Details

06 Aug 2019
Video

Tackling the housing crisis one renovation at a time

February 2015
Supplement

The Affordable Care Act (D): Making a Decision on the Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Tax Exclusion

By: Joseph L. Bower and Michael Norris

In the summer of 2009, a meeting is called in the White House to discuss the impact of changing the rules on the employer-sponsored health insurance tax exclusion. View Details

Keywords: Health Care; Health Care Policy; Health; Government and Politics; Health Industry; United States

24 Apr 2014
News

Addressing the housing needs of India’s poor

community engagement, design, and affordability as the key elements of improving housing conditions for the poor. It provides an alternative to traditional models of mass-housing developments that lead to... View Details

22 May 2024
HBS Case

Banned or Not, TikTok Is a Force Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore

you. It doesn’t rely on what you say. It observes what you do and choose not to do and builds a model of who you are.” Ghosh’s analysis debuts at a time when TikTok is drawing fresh scrutiny related to how its Chinese owners influence global markets and minds. In... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Technology

31 Oct 2016
Research & Ideas

Quantitative Easing Didn’t Ease the Housing Crisis for the Neediest

homes. Households refinancing in 2009 saved an average of $250 per month—or $3,000 per year—due to the lower interest rates afforded by quantitative easing, on average cashing out about $20,000 of home equity, says Di Maggio. “But the... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel

February 2017 (Revised March 2017)
Case

Link REIT

By: Siddharth Yog

Publicly listed in November 2005, Link REIT was the first real estate investment trust (REIT) in Hong Kong after the Hong Kong government decided to privatize a portfolio of community shopping malls, car parks, and fresh produce markets. Run by CEO George Hongchoy, the... View Details

Keywords: Hong Kong; REIT; Real Estate; Retail; Government; China; Housing; Public Company; Strategic Planning; Expansion; Public Equity; Real Estate Industry; Hong Kong; China