Prof. Albert Saiz discusses how older Americans are impacting the real estate market in the Greater Boston area. “There’s a mismatch now,” saysSaiz. “As people age in place, these households tend to be two people or sometimes one person in maybe a three- or four-bedroom home. Since they’re not downsizing as we expected, we have a huge, huge need for bigger homes to host younger families.”
A new study conducted by Prof. Albert Saiz and his colleagues has found “for housing access to improve in Mexico, financial support such as mortgages or subsidies, along with greater buy-in from local governments and the private sector, is key,” writes Kylie Madry for Reuters.
A new study by Prof. Albert Saiz has found that Mexican housing must become denser and better planned in order to provide adequate living options to lower-income parts of the population, reports Kylie Madry for Reuters. “According to Saiz, the prevalence of self-built, one-family homes is a bigger problem than growing numbers of ‘digital nomads’ – remote workers living in Mexico but earning disproportionately large salaries from abroad – which have been the focus of criticism since the coronavirus pandemic took many jobs online,” writes Madry.
Using machine learning techniques, MIT researchers analyzed social media sentiment around the world during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic and found that the “pandemic precipitated a dramatic drop in happiness,” reports Charlotte Hu for Popular Science. “We wanted to do this global study to compare different countries because they were hit by the pandemic at different times,” explains Prof. Siqi Zheng, “and they have different cultures, different political systems, and different healthcare systems.”
Bloomberg reporter Chris Anstey spotlights a new study by MIT researchers that finds that during the Covid-19 pandemic people have been taking cues from their neighbors as to whether it is safe to resume social activities like dining in restaurants. “We felt that in [some] uncertain times, such information might be particularly valuable,” said Prof. Siqi Zheng. “If others think it’s safe to go out, then maybe I should feel safe. To be sure, we were also prepared for the opposite reaction, that people would hunker down and try to avoid crowds.”
Politco reporter Catherine Boudreau explores a study by researchers from MIT’s Real Estate Innovation Lab offers suggestions on how people can reduce their carbon footprints when shopping. “My biggest takeaway is to be a more mindful consumer. Try not to get in the car to go shop. If you do, make it a big shopping trip to avoid multiple trips. Walking and biking always wins,” explains research scientist Andrea Chegut.
Professor Emeritus Tunney Lee, an architect and urban planner who served as the chief of planning and design for the Boston Redevelopment Authority, has died at age 88, reports Bryan Marquard for The Boston Globe. “At MIT, Mr. Lee was a mentor to scores of architects, teaching them to look beyond the creativity that went into designing buildings."
WBUR’s Fred Thys reports on how MIT faculty members are drawing on their experience with online courses to design more immersive case studies. “We really want students to feel like they're on the ground with us, investigating with us what is going on in a particular place,” explains Danya Sherman of the MIT Case Study Initiative.
Tim Logan writes for The Boston Globe that in a new paper MIT researchers estimate how much the proposed Green Line extension has boosted property values. Graduate student Austin Paul explains that thus far, “we’ve probably only seen prices go up 40 percent” of where they may ultimately end up.
A gift from alumnus Samuel Tak Lee will be used to establish a new MIT lab for sustainable real estate development, reports Chris Staiti of Bloomberg News. The gift will “help design a program that ties the study of real estate to 21st-century realities.”
One of the largest gifts in MIT's history will be used to “advance socially responsible and sustainable real estate, with a focus on China,” the Associated Press reports. The gift, from alumnus Samuel Tak Lee, will be used to establish a lab for sustainable real estate development, fund student fellowships, and put the lab’s curriculum online.
BostInno reporter Lauren Landry writes that MIT has received one of the largest gifts in the school’s history from alumnus Samuel Tak Lee. The gift will be used to create a lab dedicated to socially responsible and sustainable real estate development, with a focus on China.