Publications

November 1990 (Revised January 2008)
Case

Regency Plaza

By: William J. Poorvu and Richard E Crum

Designed to examine the process of project management during the development cycle of a luxury condominium building, exploring the issue of how the design, development strategy, project organization, and project personnel are interrelated. More specifically, looks at... View Details

Keywords: Buildings and Facilities; Design; Construction; Housing; Management Practices and Processes; Projects; Luxury; Real Estate Industry

September 1988 (Revised June 1989)
Case

Mortgage Investors Corp. (M.I.)

By: William J. Poorvu

Keywords: Mortgages; Real Estate Industry

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June 1987 (Revised July 2004)
Case

Textile Corporation Building, The

By: William J. Poorvu

Describes the potential acquisition of a downtown office building in Boston through a sealed bid auction. The prospective buyer analyzes in detail all elements of the income and expense statements, calculates the effect of all improvements, and imputes a purchase price... View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Property; Bids and Bidding; Auctions; Price; Asset Pricing; Real Estate Industry; Boston

2020
Chapter

Climate Change Is Going to Transform Where and How We Build

By: John D. Macomber

As fires, floods, and droughts increasingly threaten homes, businesses, and other institutions, climate risk has become financial risk. This implies that homeowners and investors have been making location decisions without properly pricing the cost of potential peril,... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Housing; Mortgages; Geographic Location; Real Estate Industry

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26 May 2020
Cold Call Podcast

Can the ‘Cummings Way’ Live On after the Founder Retires?

Keywords: Re: Christina R. Wing; Real Estate

28 Apr 2020
Cold Call Podcast

Is the Healthiest Building in the World Worth the Rent?

Keywords: Re: John D. Macomber; Real Estate

19 Oct 2011
Research & Ideas

Designing Cities for a Sustainable Future

On a June day in Manhattan with temperatures heading into the 90s, a straphanger named Mike is taking his customary subway ride to work. People are grumbling about the heat, but hey, it's summer, it's supposed to be hot, and besides, "Whaddya gonna do?" New Yorkers... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Construction; Real Estate

05 Aug 2024
Research & Ideas

Watching for the Next Economic Downturn? Follow Corporate Debt

For commercial debt backed by real estate collateral, non-performing loans rise more than 81 percent once the crisis hits. “Once you have defaults in the commercial sector, the bank balance sheet is... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

25 Jan 2013
Research & Ideas

Why a Harvard Finance Instructor Went to the Kumbh Mela

perfect places to transfer and share not only information, but disease as well. From Harvard Business School, I am here to discover what the Kumbh Mela can teach me about real estate, urbanization, sustainability, and infrastructure. We... View Details

Keywords: by John D. Macomber; Real Estate; Real Estate

18 Feb 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Urbanization with Chinese Characteristics? China’s Gamble for Modernization

Keywords: by Kristen Looney and Meg Rithmire; Real Estate; Real Estate

12 Sep 2007
Op-Ed

Building Sandcastles: The Subprime Adventure

To construct a house, builders need a firm foundation. For a financial empire, Wall Street wizards need only greed, gullibility, and optimism. The subprime empire began with a tangible structure: a house. For the buyer, that house was a home. It represented upward... View Details

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

20 Jan 2017
Research & Ideas

Here’s How Businessman Trump Is Likely to Approach the Presidency

parlayed his fame as a celebrity real estate developer into a winning pitch to voters as a Washington outsider. Emphasizing his decades of experience as a wheeler-dealer building luxury hotels, casinos, and... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese

November 1978 (Revised January 1986)
Case

Stanford Court Condominiums

By: William J. Poorvu

Keywords: Real Estate Industry

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January 2020
Case

Terra Nova: A Social Business Trying to Unlock Land Rights for the Urban Poor in Brazil

By: Julie Battilana, Ruth Costas, Marissa Kimsey and Priscilla Zogbi

Brothers André and Daniel Albuquerque founded the company Terra Nova in 2001 to mediate land disputes between poor families illegally living in urban areas and the official landowners—with the aspiration to improve the lives of the poor. A business-led approach to the... View Details

Keywords: Mission and Purpose; Social Enterprise; Entrepreneurship; Negotiation; Power and Influence; Social Issues; Conflict and Resolution; Business and Government Relations; Infrastructure; Urban Development; Real Estate Industry; Brazil; Latin America

January 2019
Case

King Abdullah Economic City: Population Drivers and Cash Flow

By: John D. Macomber

CEO of high profile new economic city in Saudi Arabia must decide how to allocate limited investment funds across projects under duress. Issues include understanding core economic drivers; planning infrastructure investment and return; attracting multinationals; and... View Details

Keywords: Urban Development; Infrastructure; Project Finance; Resource Allocation; Decision Making; City; Real Estate Industry; Saudi Arabia

July 2014 (Revised May 2015)
Case

Making Room for the Baby Boom: Senior Living

By: Charles F. Wu, Joseph Beyer and Arthur I. Segel

Tom Alperin's National Development has purchased a building site in affluent Wellesley, MA, and is in the process of deciding whether to build apartments, a combination of independent living and assisted living units for seniors, or perhaps even higher acuity... View Details

Keywords: Senior Living; Assisted Living; Independent Living; Property; Finance; Real Estate Industry; Boston; Massachusetts; United States

June 2014
Teaching Note

Via Verde

By: Arthur I Segel

Developers Jonathan Rose and Adam Weinstein were trying to determine which of three proposals to submit to the city of New York in response to a RFP to create an affordable housing project in the South Bronx. The site, referred to as Via Verde, was a 1.5-acre... View Details

Keywords: Affordable Housing; Property; Real Estate Industry; United States

June 2010 (Revised December 2013)
Supplement

Hang Lung Properties and the Chengdu Decision (B)

By: John D. Macomber, Michael Shih-Ta Chen and Keith Chi-Ho Wong

Second phase of auction for a prime retail development parcel in Chengdu, China. Competition forces the firm to revisit all of its land purchase criteria. Hang Lung Properties is known for rigorous due diligence, for discipline in buying property, and for good... View Details

Keywords: Geographic Location; Auctions; Bids and Bidding; Infrastructure; Competitive Strategy; Valuation; Real Estate Industry; Chengdu