In the media

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Our research is regularly cited in national and local news outlets; below is some of our recent press coverage.

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The Atlantic

When Will Be a Good Time to Buy a House?

One thing that could somewhat dampen price increases—as well as the bidding wars that have pleased homeowners and exasperated buyers—is a rise in interest rates, which is expected to happen this year. If that rise is sharp, “that will take away one of the fuels for this fire,” Chris Herbert, the managing director of Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, told me.

The New York Times

How Are People Spending Their Home-Equity Loans?

Last week, the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University reported that annual increases in spending on home remodeling rose from 4.7 percent in the first quarter of 2021 to 9.5 percent in the fourth quarter, and double-digit increases are projected into 2022.

Grist

Why renters are uniquely vulnerable to climate disasters

Climate change is on a collision course with the affordability crisis in U.S. housing — and renters are poised to fare the worst. That’s the conclusion of a new report from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, which found that renters face the greatest risk from climate-related disasters striking their homes.

Boston.com

Harvard: Competition heats up for housing. Renters of color are the hardest hit.

There may have been a brief price dip in rental homes, especially high-end apartments, at the beginning of the pandemic. But last year showed a surge in demand across all price points sent rents soaring, according to Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University’s America’s Rental Housing 2022 report released Friday.

Realtor.com

The No. 1 Reason Rental Prices Are Soaring Right Now

The reason that rents are rising so quickly is more people are competing for places to live. The rental vacancy rate fell to 5.8%—the lowest it’s been since the mid-1980s, according to a recent report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

The Boston Globe

Amid pandemic, the demand for single-family rentals soars

“The big thing right now that’s pretty obvious is just this crazy rise in home prices,” said Whitney Airgood-Obrycki, a research associate at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

The New York Times

They Remodeled Before Covid. Here’s What They Regret Now.

Year-over-year spending on home remodeling grew by more than 9 percent from the third quarter of 2019 to the third quarter of 2021, to $357 billion a year, according to the Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.