One way to gauge the health of an industry is to look at its investment activity. Ken McIntyre, managing director and head of strategic initiatives at MetLife Inc., provides such a view. In addition to its insurance operations, MetLife is one of the leading investing operations in commercial real estate. McIntyre discusses the current risk appetite of investors and offers his perspective of a broader market recovery.

In many places, local government tax revenues have declined because of the economic downturn. Will Doerner of Florida State University discusses his findings on the relationship between housing price fluctuations and tax revenues in Florida. He also explores the responses of local officials and highlights one unintended consequence of a local government policy.

Creating affordable and safe housing options across a broad range of income levels has been a vexing problem for communities large and small. Atlanta has led the way in developing a viable solution, becoming the first city to demolish its entire stock of public housing as it transitioned to a model of mixed-income communities. In this podcast, Renée Glover, president and CEO of the Atlanta Housing Authority, discusses her approach to subsidized housing, how the economic downturn has affected this model, and what changes she sees on the horizon.