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Research & Policy
Furman Center Issues Fact Brief on Rent Stabilization Case
April 19, 2012: The Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy has issued a fact brief about rent stabilization in New York City in advance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s announcement on whether it will hear the case of Harmon v. Kimmel, which challenges rent regulation laws in New York City. The brief details the number of rent stabilized units in New York City, in addition to demographic and socioeconomic data comparing tenants inhabiting these units with tenants in market rate units. If heard by the Supreme Court, the case could potentially affect nearly half of the rental units in New York City. Read the full fact brief here.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Research Featured in HUD’s Cityscape Journal
March 27, 2012: Two Furman Center research papers were featured in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Cityscape, a journal on policy development and research. Furman researchers, Samuel Dastrup, Simon McDonnell, and Vincent Reina’s paper “Household Energy Bills and Subsidized Housing” examines the incentives for different billing arrangements under the Project-based Section 8, Section 8 voucher, Public Housing, and Low Income Housing Tax Credit programs compared to unassisted properties. The study finds that assisted tenants’ rent is more likely to include utilities, which reduces the incentive for energy efficient investments. Research Fellow Vincent Reina and Data Manager Michael Williams’ paper “The Importance of Using Layered Data to Analyze Housing: The Case of the Subsidized Housing Information Project” features the Furman Center’s Subsidized Housing Information Project (SHIP) database, which combines more than 50 disparate data sets to provide extensive information on nearly 235,000 units of privately-owned subsidized rental housing in New York City. The article shows how the layering of data in the SHIP database provides a more accurate estimate of how many units have been developed, preserved, and may expire from their subsidy program, while the pooling of data allows for the analysis of financing trends for housing subsidy programs. Find the full papers here.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Launches New York City Quarterly Housing Report
March 28, 2012: In an analysis of fourth quarter 2011 housing indicators, the Furman Center finds that home sales volume continued to decline citywide, with the number of transactions citywide down 15 percent from the previous quarter and 11 percent from the fourth quarter of 2010. Foreclosure starts were down in most of the city. Manhattan was the only borough where the number of foreclosure starts increased, although the number of foreclosure notices issued in Manhattan remained well below the numbers issued in any of the other boroughs. The Quarterly Housing Update is unique among New York City housing reports because it incorporates sales data, new construction indicators, and foreclosures. It also presents a repeat sales index for each borough to capture price appreciation while controlling for housing quality. View the press release.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Releases New Report on New York City’s Minimum Parking Requirements
March 21, 2012: A new analysis released by the Furman Center and its Institute for Affordable Housing Policy: Searching for the Right Spot: Minimum Parking Requirements and Housing Affordability in New York City, examines minimum residential parking requirements in communities throughout the city and explores the possible effects on housing affordability and on the city’s sustainability goals. The brief finds that the requirements may be causing developers to supply more off-street parking spaces than tenants and homebuyers demand, potentially driving up the cost of housing and promoting inefficient car ownership. View the press release here.
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News & Events
Max Weselcouch Testifies at New York City Council Hearing on Foreclosures
Jan. 30, 2012: Furman Center Data Manager and Research Analyst Max Weselcouch testified at a hearing of the New York City Council’s Committee on Community Development on mortgage foreclosures in New York. The testimony covered Furman Center research on the ongoing nature of the foreclosure crisis, the community impacts of foreclosures, and the likelihood that borrowers who undergo foreclosure counseling will receive mortgage modifications. Read her testimony here.
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News & Events
Ingrid Gould Ellen Participates in Webinar on the Effect of Foreclosures on Families
Jan. 26, 2012: Furman Center Faculty Co-Director Ingrid Gould Ellen participated in a webinar “The Foreclosure Crisis in Three Cities: Children, Schools, and Neighborhoods” hosted by The Center for Housing Policy. The webinar was part of a series on foreclosures for HousingPolicy.org’s Live at the Forum. Ingrid Ellen’s presentation, “Children and the Foreclosure Crisis: School Mobility” is available here. She joined two other researchers from Baltimore and Washington D.C. to present studies exploring the similarities and differences of where families go after foreclosure. For additional information on the effects of the foreclosure crisis on children, read the Furman Center study on the relationship between foreclosure and student mobility here.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Launches New York City Quarterly Housing Report
Nov. 28, 2011: In an analysis of third quarter housing indicators, the Furman Center finds that home sales volume remained low in the third quarter of 2011, with the number of properties sold citywide four percent lower than the number sold in the third quarter of 2010. The Quarterly Housing Update is unique among New York City housing reports because it incorporates sales data, new construction indicators, and foreclosures. It also presents a repeat sales index for each borough to capture price appreciation while controlling for housing quality. View the press release.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Releases Study on Housing Vouchers and Neighborhood Crime
Nov. 2, 2011: New research released by the Furman Center finds no evidence that an increase of voucher holders in a community leads to increases in crime. The paper, American Murder Mystery Revisited: Do Housing Voucher Households Cause Crime, instead finds a different association: that voucher holders are more likely to move into areas when crime rates are already rising. More than two million renters now receive Housing Choice Vouchers which subsidize rent in private apartments. However, community opposition to vouchers can be fierce due to perceptions that voucher holders will both reduce property values and heighten crime. View Fact Sheet.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Releases New Report on Federal Loan Limit Reductions
Oct. 11, 2011: A new paper by the Furman Center, A Canary in the Mortgage Market? Why the Recent FHA and GSE Loan Limit Reductions Deserve Attention, explores the potential implications of recent reductions in the maximum loan size that can be guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (Government-Sponsored Enterprises or GSEs), or insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) in many parts of the country. The changes, which went into effect on Oct. 1, 2011, represent the first step in a long-term policy goal to reduce the federal government’s current role in the mortgage system. The reductions will also be a significant test of the private mortgage finance system. View Factsheet.
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Research & Policy
Furman Center Launches Subsidized Housing Information Project
Sept. 8, 2011: The Furman Center released the Subsidized Housing Information Project (SHIP), a database containing financial and physical information on nearly 235,000 units of privately-owned, subsidized rental housing in New York City developed with major government programs. The data is accessible through a user-friendly, interactive data search tool available here. The Furman Center’s Institute for Affordable Housing Policy simultaneously released the State of New York City’s Subsidized Housing report, which provides a comprehensive analysis of the properties in the SHIP database, and identifies opportunities to preserve affordable housing in the coming years. Additionally, the Institute released an online Directory of New York City Affordable Housing Programs, a reference tool explaining nearly 200 unique housing programs that have been employed in New York City. View the press release.