Lusk Perspectives

What does it actually take to rebuild after a disaster—and who gets to build back? Longtime Altadena resident and development professional Joel Bryant (Bronzeville, Inc.) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to cover the real-world mechanics of post-wildfire rebuilding. Drawing on his decades of experience in multifamily projects, Bryant explains how homeowners are navigating surveys, insurance constraints, permitting, and construction costs while detailing the small but meaningful milestones that signal progress. The conversation transitions from the practical to the systemic: how the permitting process has evolved since the fires, what it takes to secure approvals quickly, and why architects play a critical role in keeping projects on track. As rebuilding efforts gather momentum, a central question remains: rebuilding for whom? Highlights include: The step-by-step process of rebuilding a home after wildfire loss How projected timelines are playing out in Altadena Why permitting speed depends as much on people as on portals How insurance limits shape design and feasibility ADUs, density, and the future of Altadena's commercial corridors Preserving community identity while rebuilding at scale More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives  

What's driving the uneven recovery at the core of California cities, and how is that impacting housing and investment? Sean Burton (Cityview) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) discussing the forces and fundamentals reshaping urban markets. The conversation moves from post-pandemic population shifts and the surge in AI-driven demand to the regulatory dynamics influencing Southern California development. Highlights include: Why San Francisco may be turning a corner and whether an AI boom can sustain it. How concerns about regulatory risk have chilled investor sentiment in the City of Los Angeles. Where supply–demand imbalances are creating long-term opportunities. What San Diego got right to accelerate permitting and development. The latest progress in rebuilding after the LA County wildfires. More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

California's recent wave of pro-housing legislation has opened the door for more development on single-family lots and urban infill sites, but how much progress have we really made?  Shane Phillips (UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to trace California's evolving policy landscape, from accessory dwelling units to long-overdue CEQA reform. The conversation moves from the success of recent ADU regulations to the barriers slowing smaller-scale infill and condo development. Cost structures, ownership models, and building standards all shape housing supply. Phillips and Green discuss how policy could better balance affordability, density, and quality of life across Southern California. Highlights include: - Why recent ADU laws succeeded where earlier reforms fell short. - Potential condo liability reforms to encourage smaller-scale housing ownership. - How construction costs constrain "missing middle" infill. - The trade-offs of eliminating single-room occupancy housing in US cities. - How ownership models shape neighborhood attitudes and investment. More Lusk Perspectives UCLA Housing Voice Podcast

How are retailers adapting to a changing consumer base and evolving real estate needs? Rachel Elias Wein (WeinPlus) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to explore what's next for retail. From data centers to neighborhood shopping centers, consumer behavior is driving change. The conversation spotlights how ownership models, store management, and customer habits are reshaping commercial property strategy. Highlights include: Why some retailers sell off their real estate while others buy it back. How energy access impacts location strategy. What restaurants bring to retail destinations despite tenant turnover risks. The strong link between store-manager tenure and store profitability. Why omnichannel customers are the most valuable, and how real estate plays a role in retention. More:  https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

What do supply numbers tell us about LA County's housing crisis, and how can research guide next steps? Jorge De la Roca (USC Price) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss the findings of the 2025 State of Los Angeles County Housing (SOLACHAN) Report At the center of their conversation is the modern city dilemma: while cities drive economic vitality, they also create steep costs of living. In LA County, permitting delays, demographic shifts, and a mismatch between incomes and supply add up to a housing market that's falling short. Highlights include: Why building a multifamily project in LA takes nearly twice as long as the national average. Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are driving new supply, but may not translate to housing. The widening income split between renters. Demographic shifts show fewer families and declining Black residents in LA. Why the favored model of filtering can't take hold at current levels of housing production.   Explore the SOLACHAN Report   More Lusk Perspectives

What shaped Related California's approach to housing, and how has it adapted across market shifts? William A. Witte and Gino A. Canori (Related California) join Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to reflect on more than three decades of development, from pioneering uses of tax-exempt bonds to navigating today's capital markets. The conversation begins with policy and finance, including tax credits, bond cap programs, and the long-term value of rehab versus new construction, before moving to operations, the shifting geography of multifamily demand, and today's market reset. Highlights include: - How Related carved out a niche by combining market-rate housing with affordable units under the 80/20 program - Post-COVID shifts in multifamily demand from urban cores to suburban, amenity-rich destinations. - Underwriting is still absorbing the spike in insurance and labor costs while the new normal continues to emerge. - Signs of recovery in San Francisco leasing and investment. -The economics and operational tactics of managing mixed-income buildings. More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

How can cities adapt to rising climate risks and shifting infrastructure needs? Christopher Boone (Dean, USC Price School of Public Policy) joins Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss how sustainability and resilience are reshaping housing, cities, and policy. From rebuilding after California wildfires to lessons from London's limited social housing, the wide-ranging conversation highlights the tradeoffs between affordability, risk, and durability facing communities across the US. Highlights include: Why mentors are crucial to career development. The gap between data and difficult decisions to achieve sustainability goals. Fostering resilient communities by addressing jobs and health. Baltimore's unique reversal on neighborhoods exposed to toxic releases. How communities relocate and rebuild after natural disasters and the implications for the recent Los Angeles Eminent domain and the importance of community engagement. Lessons in sustainability from abroad for US policy.   More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Selma Hepp (Cotality) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to unpack the third year of low home sales as affordability and insurance reshape demand across the US. From Florida's downturn to California's inventory bump, the conversation explores local shifts and their contributions to national trends. Hepp also shares how new climate risk tools could change pricing and property insurance in the future. Highlights include: - Why home sales today look worse than in the aftermath of the Great Recession - What makes Austin's home value decline so unique - Why the Midwest and New England lead the nation in home price growth - How climate risk and insurance are impacting migration - The growing role of small investors, especially in housing markets with constrained supply    More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

What's driving today's housing market shifts? How can economic principles help us navigate life and career choices? Daryl Fairweather (Redfin) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) and offers a glimpse at US housing markets before diving into insights from her new book *Hate the Game*. The conversation starts with Florida's drop in home price appreciation, California's middle-of-the-pack performance, and the Midwest's rise before turning to Fairweather's career journey from academia to tech. Highlights include: - Key factors in the Midwest and Rust Belt's turnaround - How insurance costs and HOA fees are changing the condo market in Florida and beyond. - What economic exams for PhDs tell us about the kind of talent they seek. - How economic tools like backward induction can help leverage promotions. - Why winning a home buying bid could be worse than losing. More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

With fewer transactions to measure, what's happening in real estate capital markets, and what's next? Kev Zoryan (Arselle Investments) joins Richard K. Green (USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to explore the state of capital markets and how today's environment is reshaping investment strategy. Zoryan shares his path from private equity to launching his own firm addressing the succession gap he sees in real estate organizations.  Highlights include: - Why matching capital to strategy is more critical than ever - How return metrics have evolved and what to prioritize - Where the US stands as a priority for global capital amid uncertainty - What refinancing challenges may still loom for commercial real estate More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Jerrold D. Green (Research Professor, USC Annenberg and President & CEO, Pacific Council on International Policy) joins Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss a short list of global hotspots from a United States perspective. Green delivers insights and offers detailed context on Israel-Gaza, China, Mexico, Ukraine-Russia, and the unique position the US holds within the global economy and international relations. More: http://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

How will the US economy perform in 2024? Claudia Sahm (Founder, Sahm Consulting) joins Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss the US economy's recovery from COVID along with additional shocks and infer the implications of the Federal Reserve's playbook for 2024. Sahm's key points: - The US economy undeniably turned a corner in 2023 - The US recovery remains stronger than its peer countries - The Federal Reserve will continue their conservative approach to rate cuts - The greatest risk to the market in the near future is the Federal Reserve's sluggish response Sahm also fields questions on the risk that commercial real estate and regional bank distress poses to the economy, the Federal Reserve's limits on impacting housing affordability, and more. More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Clayton Dube (Director, USC U.S.-China Institute) joins Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss the condition of U.S.-China relations and the latest developments in China's global influence on trade, supply chain issues, technology, and more. Dube highlights a challenge Chinese officials are watching closely in the coming years: stalling economic growth. To approach the "middle-income" problem, Dube notes the ways in which the government has both relaxed and tightened its grip on markets in an effort to continue the economy's upward momentum.   Included in the discussion: Security concerns between the U.S. and China The important distinction between China's total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and GDP per capita How China's tech rivalry with the U.S. is evolving Why Chinese firms have overpaid in key U.S. real estate transactions   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Joyce Chang (Managing Director & Chair of Global Research, JPMorgan Chase & Co.) delivers an overview of global economic trends to watch heading into 2023 and beyond. In the near term, Chang sees a mild recession taking effect in late 2023, with a true "soft landing", as identified by the Federal Reserve, being unlikely. She notes that overall cycles may be shorter, with a likelihood of 4-year recessions rather than the historic 8 or 10, and markets that rally faster to regain losses. Included in the long-term outlook are remarks on China's slowing growth, regions that could benefit from supply chain shifts away from China and nearshoring, and the political divides in the US around ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) projects and investing. Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) also fields questions on the US housing crisis, how rapidly rising interest rates could affect regional banks and nontraditional finance, the implications of a global aging population, and more. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:48 Presentation 41:08 Q+A   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Lusk Director Richard K. Green delivers highlights from the 2022 Casden Multifamily Forecast. Before Green gives a breakdown of Southern California multifamily real estate markets, he pauses to discuss four uncertainties impacting the region. Inflation, interest rates, net migration, and the impending recession are all top-of-mind issues that could dilute the forecast's potency should any of the factors take a dramatic rise or dip. As for the forecast, Green reviews historical and forecasted data on each market, including overall economic resiliency, net migration since the pandemic began, construction activity, vacancy rates, rent growth, and more. Regions covered include Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, the Inland Empire, and Ventura. More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

An industry panel discusses the changing dynamics of office work in real estate and beyond. By now, it's apparent that some version of remote work is here to stay for a dominant number of firms. Remote and hybrid work can solve serious employee issues like flexibility, commute times, and even productivity. However, the new work arrangements are not without drawbacks. Moderator Mary Lynne Boorn (Associate Professor, USC Sol Price School of Public Policy) invites Allison Lynch (Compass Ventures), Amalia Paliobeis (Senior Director, Portfolio Management, AvantStay), and Brandi Popovich (Vice President, Talent Acquisition, SoLa Impact) to bring insights from their unique perspective on hiring and retention, adaptive management styles, office space, and to discuss lessons learned in distributed work environments. Included in the discussion: - The new costs of mandating an entirely in-person work week - How remote environments impact mentorship - Crucial in-person activities for employees and employers - Strategies for preserving company culture   Links to mentioned resources: The Work/Life Integration Project - http://worklife.wharton.upenn.edu/   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Racial bias in home appraisals and assessments is not just an anecdote. Norm Miller (Hahn Chair & Professor of Real Estate Finance, University of San Diego and Vice President, Homer Hoyt Institute), Ruchi Singh (Assistant Professor, University of Georgia), and Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) discuss the statistically significant racial and ethnic biases in appraisals and tax assessments. Miller details the benefits of automated valuation models, but he also cautions that using machine learning without human oversight of variables can result in a different set of biases. Singh shows how assessments are regressive, often resulting in a mismatch of a lower property value with higher property taxes. She also points out contributing factors, including why excluding information like nearby schools or the condition of the home can set the assessments in opposition to appraisals.   More from the discussion: How to make the assessment process fairer The importance of loan-to-value ratios in underwriting Pressure appraisers face in avoiding errors Why short-term and long-term appraisal models will be required to avoid bias   Relevant links: New York Times Story: Home Appraised With a Black Owner: $472,000. With a White Owner: $750,000. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/18/realestate/housing-discrimination-maryland.html   Freddie Mac: Racial and Ethnic Valuation Gaps In Home Purchase Appraisals https://www.freddiemac.com/research/insight/20210920-home-appraisals   William Sprigg's Perspective: https://lusk.usc.edu/events/racial-justice-and-economics-crucial-pairing   Freddie Mac's Appraisal Institute Diversity Initiative: https://www.appraisalinstitute.org/the-appraisal-profession/appraiser-diversity-initiative/   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Industry practitioners in lending and policy discuss the research and recommendations in the recently released paper "ADU Construction Financing: Opportunities to Expand Access for Homeowners." The joint paper, produced by the UC Berkeley Terner Center for Housing Innovation and the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, compiles national data and stakeholder interviews to provide a picture of the hurtles to financing and what barriers could be removed to bring ADU construction to scale.   Included in the discussion: Recent updates to Freddie Mac's ADU policies How friction during financing curtails homeowner commitment Appraisal gaps in accurately assessing ADU value The role contractors play in mitigating financial risk The importance of targeted consumer protections as more data emerges Paper Link: https://lusk.usc.edu/adu-construction-financing-opportunities-expand-access-homeowners   Introduction and Sponsor Remarks: Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) Amy Anderson (Senior Vice President, Wells Fargo Foundation) Racheal Meiers (National Leader, Economic Opportunity, Kaiser Permanente)   Federal Context: Erika Poethig (Special Assistant to the President for Housing and Urban Policy, The White House Domestic Policy Council) Diane Slemmer (Single Family Affordable Lending Manager, Freddie Mac)   Panel Discussion: Ben Metcalf (Managing Director, UC Berkeley Terner Center for Housing Innovation) Meredith Stowers (Branch Business Development Manager, Cross Country Mortgage, LLC) Susan Geddes Brown (Chief Executive Officer, Core SGB, LLC) Samar Jha (Government Affairs Director, AARP)   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives

Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) delivers a presentation on how the ongoing conflict in Ukraine could impact the global economic trajectory as many countries, including the United States, attempt to cool inflation without triggering a recession. Green dives into more specific factors contributing to the USA's resiliency or vulnerability to global economic shocks. He shares data on why Cap Rates are likely to increase in the future, the trends economists look for with the revitalization of goods and services spending, how real estate impacts inflation, and which US states boast more robust infrastructure to weather any potential global economic downturns. Green also fields questions on affordable housing, the global aging workforce, commercial mortgage rates, and more.

Austin Beutner (Founder and Chair, Vision to Learn) joins Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) for a discussion on what it takes to accomplish real change in Los Angeles.    Beutner asserts that the twin forces of leadership and governance have the power to solve many of the ongoing and intensifying issues in the county like homelessness, education, and land use. As Superintendent of LAUSD during the pandemic, Beutner oversaw unprecedented responses like providing free food for the community, securing broadband internet access and devices for students in need, and providing reliable and cost-effective COVID testing for the nation's second-largest school district. Other school districts in 40 states across the country adopted the models LAUSD pioneered to meet their own community needs. With that crisis response as the groundwork, Green and Beutner cover such topics as the inherent limits to the Los Angeles mayoral office, what structures hold back the capacity for LA County to respond effectively, and Beutner's latest project: a ballot initiative to bring the arts to all schools in California, Vote Arts and Minds. More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives