The Urban Real Estate Game

This is a reprint of a 1990 book A comprehensive analysis of how cities grow, change, deteriorate and are resuscitated

From a Harvard Business School professor comes a concise, accessible, state-of-the-art guide to developing and investing in real estate.

The basic forces that drive societal change--from demographic shifts, to advances in technology, and transitions in economic functions--have influenced the shape of cities throughout history. This book explains America's urban renaissance and establishes a framework to understand and capitalize on the range of real estate opportunities available in cities across the country. Cities are classified into four categories of development potential. The result of the analysis is an important and inspiring conclusion that goes to the heart of this book: that every American city, irrespective of its economy, market dynamic, and geography, has unique real estate opportunities and potential for progress. A big-picture view of urban America, this book covers prospects for each major urban property type. It analyzes four key categories of cities and discusses specific metropolitan areas in terms of their real estate investment potential. It covers investment strategies and capital sources, explains 13 trends that are converging to create a paradigm shift in urban America, and provides real-world case studies that demonstrate how to make forward-thinking real estate decisions.

This up-to-date, highly-accessible book presents a unique combination of both economic theory and real estate applications, providing readers with the tools and techniques needed to understand the operation of urban real estate markets. It examines residential and non-residential real estate markets--from the perspectives of both macro- and micro-economics--as well as the role of government in real estate markets.

Real estate activity across national boundaries (investment, development and asset management) is firmly established as a major component of global economic activity. International Real Estate provides the understanding of real estate strategies and transactions that cross national boundaries. International organizations lament the narrow perspective of professionals in the real estate field, which stems from training that takes a parochial rather than international view of the practices and processes of real estate markets. This book takes an explicitly international perspective to the decision-making process leading to final 'accept' or 'reject' investment decisions. It will be the first to adopt an institutional approach that directly addresses the problems of how to identify and avoid the main pitfalls of cross-border investment in real estate. The key to understanding international real estate comes from understanding the impact on investment and management decisions of differences in the formal and informal 'rules of the game'. The authors define the key feature of international real estate as the institutions that frame, facilitate or impede investment in land and buildings across national boundaries.