Darius Lakdawalla (Director of Research, USC Schaeffer Center) joins Richard Green (Director, Lusk Center for Real Estate) to outline the value for universal screening for COVID-19, as well as the cost benefits and practical approach to pooled testing applied in businesses and schools. Richard Green asks questions regarding the challenge of children adopting masks, how evolving information impacts the public, and what Lakdawalla’s criteria would be for his children returning to school.

David Brickman (CEO, Freddie Mac) joins Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to deliver analysis on the state of US single family housing, multi-family housing, and GSEs (Government Sponsored Enterprises). Brickman points out that while the economic contraction has been dramatic since the onset of COVID-19, the data suggests that the economy is recovering with the help of Federal intervention. Richard Green brings up questions regarding the difference in urban vs suburban markets, underwriting loans, and what rent strikes might mean for borrowers.

Torsten Sløk (Chief Economist, Deutsche Bank Securities) joins Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to outline the three different factors that play into the future of finance, including the virus curve flattening, financial markets stabilizing, and the ultimate shape of the economic recovery. Green offers questions concerning US and China relations, how foreign investment in American real estate might change, and the difference between the finance structure of Europe versus the US.

Mark Zandi (Moody’s Analyics) sits down with Richard Green about COVID-19’s impacts that are still to come. Green asks about Zandi’s views on office, retail, and housing real estate markets. Zandi and Green also share thoughts on how the supply chain might be reevaluated and modified, what employment trends the US is likely to see, and resilient cities in the near and long-term.

Industry leaders Lisa Reddy (Prologis), David Dollinger (Dollinger Properties), Stanley Iezman (American Realty Advisors), Rachel Elias Wein (WeinPlus) join Lusk Director Richard Green to provide analysis and updates and analysis on commercial retail, industrial, and office spaces.

Scott B. Laurie (President and CEO, The Olson Company) and Adrian Foley (President and COO, Brookfield Residential) join Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center) to discuss the state of the home building market, how COVID-19 has impacted the process of purchasing a new home, and how the industry is adapting to meet the needs of its customers. Richard Green fields questions about the software The Olson Company and Bookfield Residential have found helpful, what the CARES Act expiration date in July means for employment, and what long-term changes could be here to stay.

Neeraj Sood (USC Price Vice Dean for Research) discusses early findings of his ongoing LA County antibody study with Richard Green (Director, USC Lusk Center). Sood points out that so far the study indicates that still more COVID-19 numbers are going unreported, even within this particular study. Dr. Sood also explores the various factors effecting policy moving forward, and emphasizes that it should be possible to have some middle ground between strict lockdown and an unregulated (and unsafe) return to normal. Richard Green fields questions about strategy options for the US in comparison to other countries and what can be done about asymptomatic carriers, while Dr. Sood iterates that the knowledge base of COVID-19 is improving, but still needs more growth.

Guest: John Burns | CEO, John Burns Real Estate Consulting

John Burns joins Richard Green to share proprietary tools he and his team developed during the Great Recession to monitor how the current crisis has unfolded. Burns illustrates that apartments are showing signs of weakness, but with a usual market-wide spring pickup despite the COVID -19 disruption. Burns credits the Federal Government’s actions to stabilize the marketplace as a key factor in the current resiliency of home sales. Burns also points out that Millennials with means are moving more and more towards homeownership as they age, though he cautions that the relatively good news today does guarantee growth or “boom times” without resolution on how the US as a whole will manage COVID-19.

Raphael Bostic (President and CEO, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta) and Richard Green (Director, Lusk Center for Real Estate) discuss the unprecedented impact that COVID-19 has made on the US and how the Federal Government has taken unprecedented steps to meet that challenge. Bostic emphasizes that getting a handle on health is an important prerequisite to making economic efforts stick. Reflecting upon the quick, broad, and bi-partisan efforts made since the COVID-19 outbreak, Bostic points out that “when very unexpected things happen, everything is possible”.

Richard Green, Director and Chair of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate and Chair of the Department of Real Estate Development

The USC Sol Price School of Public Policy presents Price Talks: Policy in a Pandemic, a virtual series examining policy challenges around the COVID-19 pandemic. USC Price faculty share their expert perspective on the critical policy issues that are important to us all in 30-minute lunchtime Zoom presentations open to the entire Price community. Topics will include examining the impact of the crisis on the economy, the homeless crisis, voter turn-out in this year’s election, local government services and our public health infrastructure. These are unprecedented times, and the

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