Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2015. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 72-74). / The objective of this thesis is to investigate the effects of land supply on housing prices in Hong Kong. Studies will be carried out to define whether there are any correlation between land supply, housing supply and residential property prices. In order to better understand Hong Kong's housing market, this study will first present a background of establishment of Hong Kong's land tenure system, land administration system and the government's land sale process, while trying to answer the question of whether the perceived shortage in housing supply is a direct consequence of the shortage in government's land supply. The study then examines the concentration of market shares among a handful of developers and the high barrier to entry that have resulted in such anti-competitive environment. The study analyzes the leading developers' competitive advantages in terms of land bank and financial strength, and their housing supply strategies in relation to the government's land supply decisions. This paper will then insert the theoretical findings into realistic settings of Hong Kong's housing development industry, and apply the methodology of event study to detect the impact of real estate companies' development strategies and how it alters the perceived relationship between the supply of land and the supply of housing. By simultaneously considering the effects of development strategies with government land policies, the paper aims to better evaluate governments measure to regulate housing market and hope to recommend more effective policies on residential land supply in Hong Kong. / by Shu Wang. / S.M. in Real Estate Development

Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2016. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 57-58). / Chinese outbound investments have expanded rapidly in recent years and drawn wide attention in the U.S. real estate market. Unlike previous waves of Chinese investment in the past two decades, this batch of capital inflow shows various types of institutional players investing in almost all property types across the U.S. through diversified and innovative deal structures, making headlines and striking record-price deals every few weeks. Chinese investors are also driven by different incentives besides seeking for yield and return, which is partially why the U.S. real estate space is seeing interesting dynamics in the deals and markets where these investors are active in. I would like to take a deep-dive study into these outbound investment initiatives and systematically explore the key opportunities, trends and issues. For this essay, I would like to focus on the institutional side of Chinese investments, namely investments made by capital management platforms or corporates, rather than personal and family office investments into ultra-luxury houses or retail investments through EB-5 programs. As there are limited public data points recorded for executed acquisitions available to assist deep-level exploration, partially due to the relatively small transaction volume in fixed asset space, we decided to implement interview and case study approach in order to obtain front-line view of the potential trends and opportunities. This essay starts with a general overview of China's macro fundamentals and Chinese outbound investments across all destination countries and industry sectors, then analyzes the various aspects of Chinese capital in the U.S. real estate market, including size, structures, geographic breakdown, property type breakdown and key investor types supported by case studies of each investor type. The detailed transaction analysis and investment incentive analysis are also arranged in the section of investor types, since different investors are showing different characteristics. Then I addressed the key issues and trends in this space, including tax issues, granularity, real estate technology investments, macro political trends, the controversial aggressiveness and opportunities for managed accounts business and new players in the field, in order to provide forward-looking perspectives. / by Ya Gao. / S.M. in Real Estate Development

Thesis (S.M. in Real Estate Development)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in Conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2012. / Cataloged from department-submitted PDF version of thesis. This electronic version was submitted and approved by the author's academic department as part of an electronic thesis pilot project. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 101-102). / Modular construction has long been utilized in the construction of residential and many other commercial product types as a means for potentially quicker construction delivery times. Over the past 5 years this construction technique has slowly been introduced into the high rise residential market throughout the world. The additional structural challenges of high rise construction make modular construction in this setting more challenging, but the high construction costs of high rise construction also make any savings in time and hard cost worth consideration. Based on case studies, interviews and financial simulations this thesis will address the design, engineering, sustainability, scheduling, legal and financial considerations a developer would likely consider in adopting modular construction in a high rise project in the United States. / by Sri Velamati. / S.M.in Real Estate Development

Thesis (S.M. in Real Estate Development)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in Conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2011. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Page 172 blank. Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 169-171). / The purpose of this thesis is to develop a new senior housing and service product for the aging population of the next decade. The thesis starts with an overview of the senior housing industry in its current condition in 2011. It discusses the demographic characteristics of the population, the senior housing trends across the world, the changing needs and desires of the baby boom generation, the different housing products available for the elderly, the entitlement programs, and financing methods for development and operations of senior housing. Then it focuses on the Boston senior housing and assisted living industry, and looks specifically at 5 active case studies that range from housing to service providers: 2 senior housing projects, 2 assisted living projects and 1 village service provider to understand their specific models of operations, financing and designs. The case studies are analyzed and compared in how they serve the user and the developer from the perspective of affordability for the user, extent of subsidies used by the developer, appropriateness of design, extent of services and ability to service people with dementia or Alzheimer. The thesis then zooms in even further into the Cambridge, MA community and identifies senior housing problem for the middle income level of society. Using all the tools learned from the global industry and the Boston metro area case studies we suggests a new senior housing product that will solve the challenge of serving the elderly population, while allowing the residents to age in place in an affordable assisted setting. / by Yael Getz Schoen. / S.M.in Real Estate Development

Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2015. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (page 54). / In early 2010, the hotel industry began a historic demand recovery. Across hotel sectors, demand growth pushed rooms occupied above the previous year's figure by more than 10% - almost doubling peak quarterly year-over-year growth. The hotel industry has recovered ahead of the economy for the first time in U.S. history, which is unusual considering the lodging industry has run in sync with all major economic trends in the past. GDP, which traditionally correlates strongly with hotel demand growth, has failed to capture the recovery's magnitude in recent years. International tourism, an economic indicator that saw a significant surge in 2010, was suggested to be one of the probable causes. The objective of this thesis is to identify external economic factors besides GDP that have meaningful impacts on lodging demand. Instead of analyzing the lodging industry as a whole, this thesis zooms into MSA level, compares rooms sold per capita among 54 MSAs throughout the United States, and tries to figure out between market differences and within market variations. The full-service hotel analysis and limited-service hotel analysis chapters use panel data model and four estimators to derive the most appropriate regression model for each hotel sector. The author examined the correlation and significance of each independent variable to identify meaningful demand drivers at overall, between, and within MSA level. The results show evidence that convention space, domestic enplanement, and international enplanement are all important economic factors for full-service hotels. However, none of them manage to deliver a meaningful explanation on the demand growth in limited-service sector. The economic development impact chapter access the economic impact to full-service demand from convention space addition, domestic airport expansion, international airport expansion, and conversion between domestic and international terminals. The author also tracked full-service lodging demand growth with enplanement growth for each of the 54 MSAs and combined their regression results together for advanced analysis. The thesis findings reveal that top-tier MSAs and large air transportation hubs have strong correlation between enplanement and full-service lodging demand. Further, the thesis delves deep into potential economic factors that may improve limited-service model. / by Jing Yu. / S.M. in Real Estate Development

Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2015. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 69-70). / This paper seeks to reveal an overlooked opportunity to develop and invest in multifamily properties for rent in Colombia by examining all of the variables that make up a suitable investment. With more sophisticated investors entering the market, sky-high housing prices, desirable demographic trends for a growing economy and the highest share of renters in a Latin American city, Bogota has the perfect mix for developing an institutionally-owned and managed rental housing market. It is addressed to developers, property managers and investors who can seize this opportunity in years to come. Also, is meant to provide a holistic research that summarizes the present situation and provides clear guidelines for future ventures. There are clearly some challenges that this new market will face. Low rental yields, an insufficient legal and regulatory framework, and a lack of specialized funding vehicles are three of the main obstacles that these developments will encounter. From a competitive perspective, it is clear that a fragmented though efficient rental market exists. Even though it operates largely in an informal manner, this supply of units satisfies the needs of todays' rental community. These obstacles, among others, will be analyzed in this thesis to show that the existing risks can be managed and mitigated and it is indeed the right moment to develop new investment platforms. The research will contemplate the whole Colombian rental market but will focus on Bogota's mid and high-end spectrum of the housing market. While affordable-housing projects for rent can also be identified as a substantial opportunity, the fact that most likely the regulatory framework around the subject will soon change, exposes any recommendation to becoming irrelevant. In order to further develop the institutional real estate in Colombia, the country will not only need more sales and steady price increases. A central piece for becoming a sophisticated and modern market will come from a change of approach towards the process of conceiving, analyzing and investing in real estate. Even though this will take decades, the objective of this paper is to emphasize that for the rental housing market this evolution should start now. / by Anuar Perez. / S.M. in Real Estate Development

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in Conjunction with the Center for Real Estate , 2009. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Cataloged from student submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 88-89). / This paper examines REMIC regulations and Pooling and Servicing Agreements in an effort to ascertain if either the REMIC regulations or standard Pooling and Servicing Agreements are unnecessarily restrictive in the context of maximizing the profitability and minimizing losses associated with CMBS workouts, with particular attention given to the current real estate climate. The paper begins with a brief history of REMICs and moves on to an examination of the statutory requirements governing the creation and maintenance of REMIC status. Next, an examination of standard Pooling and Servicing Agreements is performed followed by attempts to identify weaknesses in REMIC regulations, which are illustrated by hypothetical examples. Potential modifications to REMIC regulations are divided into two categories: Preemptive Default and Actual Default. The paper concludes that, excepting for the discretionary short term allowance of balloon payment extensions, preemptive default modifications are unwarranted and impractical. However, the author also draws the conclusion that improvements to PSA?s might be met through better integration of master and special servicers in certain scenarios and that REMIC regulations might be improved by allowing for certain material changes to collateral as well as carve outs in default scenarios as well as short run stop gap measures including REO Debt lending and an increase to the allowable length of the REO hold period. / by William Casey Wells. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M. in Real Estate Development)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in Conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2013. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 50-53). / In 2009 the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gave the US infrastructure sector a grade D, based on the current and future needs of the nation's infrastructure and estimates that by year 2020, the US surface transportation deficit will reach $846 billion. Furthermore, in 2013 the US Congressional Budget Office estimates that the main source of highway funding, the Highway Trust Fund, will have insufficient capital to meet its shortfalls by 2015. As defined by the ASCE, infrastructure is the physical framework upon which an economy operates. Without immediate improvement and alternative solutions to fund the crumbling roadway network, the US will continue to struggle to find its way to economic prosperity. This thesis aims to give an overview of how private participation can play an integral role in revamping the US highway network and will outline several of the most important aspects of structuring a successful highway public-private partnership (PPP). Throughout the thesis, PPP is referred to as a long-term contractual agreement between a private entity and a public sponsor to construct and maintain an infrastructure asset. PPP is a complex and potentially dangerous partnership as it can inadvertently put the public at risk; however, it has also proven to be a very successful tool in many countries around the world. By examining the US highway sector and the history of transportation PPP's, this thesis analyzes failed and successful cases, as well as study partnership frameworks implemented in other countries. With this, the thesis attempts to educate stakeholders and spread awareness of how to identify and effectively allocate risks associated with PPP's. If structured and executed appropriately, PPP's will help the stakeholders in highway privatizations reach each of their respective goals and can help rebuild a sustainable highway network throughout the US. / by Ryan Butler and Eunil Lee. / S.M.in Real Estate Development

Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2015. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (page 54). / How do the various categories of operating expenses for institutional grade office buildings vary with changes in rental income and occupancy? The general consensus held is that, following the linear relationship that exists between variable expenses, occupancy and income; a change in either occupancy or income would result in a change in variable expenses. The question is by how much and in what direction? This thesis contributes to answering that question by exploring how tax, utility, insurance and maintenance expenses for office properties, across key markets in the United States, vary with rental income and occupancy level changes. To achieve this, time-series data on income and expense data for office properties from Q1 2000 to Q4 2014 was analyzed using two panel regressions. One with fixed effects for buildings to exclude all idiosyncratic characteristics of properties and another with fixed effects for time that captured the building differences. The analysis shows that the elasticities of these expenses to changes in income and occupancy vary across expense type and also across geographic location. Additionally, in majority of the cases, these elasticities were statistically significant. / by Peter K. Owusu-Opoku. / S.M. in Real Estate Development

Thesis: S.M. in Real Estate Development, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Program in Real Estate Development in conjunction with the Center for Real Estate, 2018. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 89-94). / For decades, construction productivity has been lagging behind the sectors of manufacturing, agriculture and many more, causing many problems to society. Importantly, productivity stagnation can generate housing crises by limiting the supply of additional structures, and prevents public authorities from developing their needed infrastructure. In this thesis, I assess the causes for such stagnation and provide a strategy to foster innovation. My analysis finds that the causes of stagnation stem from a lack of competitiveness that arises from a scarcity of long-term relationships with clients, information asymmetry across stakeholders, poor owner and design specifications. Combined, these issues disincentive innovation, as tendering processes do not focus on suppliers' productivity from efficiency gains or ingenuity in processes. In addition, built product size, complexity and uniqueness, as well as building codes inconsistency, all prevent the industrialization of the industry. My strategy to improve productivity is multifold. The first prerequisite to improving the situation requires promotion of collaborative risk sharing delivery methods, adoption of digitized communication tools and supply chain management. A second prerequisite is a mindset switch towards built products configurability, upgradability and easy disassembly, which will minimize waste, unsustainability and brownfield project issues. Once those prerequisites are reached, then our short- and long-term goals for innovation could be realized. Over the short term, transparency and true cost tendering will promote the industry with competitiveness and subsequent consolidation/integration that are necessary for productivity improvements. Over the longterm, the creation of a production-driven system will allow the industrialization of the industry, with standardization and repetitive manufacturing fostering continuous improvement. With such a rise of disruptive and innovative technologies, there will be a flow of at first efficiency gains and, potentially, in the long-run, productivity gains that meet the standards of the ever changing built environment. / by Nicolas Victor Joseph Gaspard Bolland. / S.M. in Real Estate Development