Publications

Career Coach

Lauren Weston

experience in the fintech, software, and real estate technology sectors. In particular, she can help students who want to "break into VC" as well as students who worked in investing prior to HBS and are... View Details

01 Jun 2011
News

Boston-area home prices off 2.7% in a year

11 Oct 2022
Research & Ideas

Shrinking the Racial Wealth Gap, One Mortgage at a Time

Hiring more minority loan officers could help people of color secure significantly more home loans and address one of the biggest factors driving the racial wealth gap, new research finds. In the white-dominated US banking industry, minority borrowers’ applications are... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Financial Services

January 2012 (Revised January 2014)
Case

Mexico City Water Shortage

By: John D. Macomber, Regina Garcia-Cuellar, Griffin H. James and Frederik Nellemann

In this case, a property company, a water privatizer, and municipal engineers explore the causes of and solutions to a severe water shortage in Mexico City, a great global capital. The protagonist is a real estate investor doing due diligence on the magnitude of the... View Details

Keywords: Infrastructure; Environmental Sustainability; Urban Development; Mexico City

February 2010 (Revised November 2013)
Case

Living PlanIT

By: Robert G. Eccles, Amy C. Edmondson, Susan Thyne and Tiona Zuzul

Living PlanIT is a start-up company that has developed a new, innovative business model for sustainable urbanization. This model reflects the software and technology backgrounds of its founders, Steve Lewis and Malcolm Hutchinson, and is in vivid contrast to other... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Business Startups; Development Economics; Entrepreneurship; City; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Urban Development; Construction Industry; Construction Industry; Construction Industry; Portugal

September 2003 (Revised November 2003)
Case

Raiser Organization, The

By: John A. Davis and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld

Jennifer and Philip Raiser, a sibling partnership who inherited a real estate management and ownership company from their father, ponder the strategic and financial challenges facing their family business. Reviews the history of the business and asks what the best... View Details

Keywords: Business History; Family Business; Growth and Development Strategy; Real Estate Industry

04 Jul 2010
News

Housing bust's severity surprising

February 2004 (Revised May 2007)
Case

George Barker

By: John A. Davis

George Barker, the 40-year-old CEO of his family's commercial real estate design and development firm, must deal with the unsatisfactory performance of his brother Peter, who is also in the business. Although Peter's performance is upsetting to George, George feels... View Details

Keywords: Family Business; Leadership Style; Business or Company Management; Performance Evaluation; Problems and Challenges; Family and Family Relationships; Real Estate Industry

Article

Large Banks and Small Firm Lending

By: Vitaly Bord, Victoria Ivashina and Ryan D. Taliaferro

We examine the long-lasting effects of the 2007 real estate price collapse on small business credit supply. Banks affected by the decline in real estate prices systematically contracted their credit to small firms. At the same time, regional and local banks, many of... View Details

Keywords: Small Firms; Credit Supply; Banking Competition; Small Business; Credit; Financial Crisis; Banks and Banking; Competition

Find at Harvard

09 Mar 2021
Cold Call Podcast

A Family Business at a Crossroads: Scaling and Succession

Keywords: Re: Christina R. Wing; Real Estate

May 2010 (Revised January 2014)
Case

Water Shortage and Property Investing in Mexico City

By: John D. Macomber, Regina Garcia-Cuellar and Griffin James

A commercial property company evaluates water risks including the government's ability to remedy, the company's operating exposure and mitigation, and whether to relocate because of water risk. A real estate fund manager assesses investment prospects in Mexico City in... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Investment; Risk Management; Infrastructure; Privatization; Business and Government Relations; Partners and Partnerships; Financial Services Industry; Real Estate Industry; Utilities Industry; Mexico City

July 2005
Case

Family Governance at the Cousin Consortium Stage

By: John A. Davis and Courtney Sampson

Explains the governance system for the Eddy family, who own the Port Blakely Companies. Provides the viewer with an inside look at the running of the family council and family assembly meetings. Also provides a brief history and overview of the forestry and real estate... View Details

Keywords: Conferences; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Corporate Governance; Business History; Business or Company Management; Family Ownership

10 Jun 2020
News

Coronavirus May Have Huge Impact on Property Markets

26 Jan 2011
News

Home sales drop, prices rise in 2010

August 2016
Teaching Note

Mahindra Lifespace Developers' Venture into Affordable Housing

By: Joseph B. Fuller and Monica Baraldi

Mahindra Lifespace Developers Limited (MLDL) was the infrastructure and real estate arm of the Mahindra Group, an Indian conglomerate with revenues of $16.5 billion in 2014. Employing 400 experts in land acquisition, design, project management, sales and marketing, and... View Details

Keywords: Business Conglomerates; Business Startups; Development Economics; Developing Countries and Economies; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Housing; Emerging Markets; Business and Government Relations; Human Needs; Social Issues; Urban Development; Real Estate Industry; India

02 Jul 2013
First Look

First Look: July 2

Publisher's link: http://hbr.org/2013/05/how-to-negotiate-with-vcs/ar/1 2006 pub Real Estate Prices During the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression By: Nicholas, Tom, and Anna Scherbina Abstract—Using... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

January 2000
Case

Selecting a New Name for Security Capital Pacific Trust

A methodology for selecting a new corporate brand name is explored, highlighting different types of names, criteria and hurdles in securing new names, and legal implications. Brand identity consultancy Lippincott & Margulies guided a real estate investment trust... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Financial Services Industry

12 Feb 2025
Video

Who owns it? The Ownership Project on how property rights shape business

November 2004 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Mall of America (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Christopher Bruner

Explores fiduciary duty issues that arose in litigation among partners in the partnership that owned and controlled the Mall of America. Describes the complex real estate transaction in which one partner attempted to purchase an additional interest in the mall from a... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Business Organization; Lawsuits and Litigation; Partners and Partnerships; Property; Investment; Retail Industry; United States