News

News August 12, 2026 Why homeowners are turning to HELOCs for borrowing Borrowers are using home equity lines of credit to fund big purchases, Susan Wachter tells Marketplace. Housing
News August 11, 2026 Eugénie L. Birch: 2026 Sir Peter Hall Award for Lifetime Achievement from IPHS The Almanac notes Eugénie L. Birch's Sir Peter Hall Award for Lifetime Achievement from IPHS.
News August 6, 2026 25.2 Million Young Adults Move Back Home Amid Housing Crunch Susan Wachter speaks to the housing affordability problem in Newsmax.  Housing
News August 5, 2026 Record number of adult children are moving in with their parents Penn IUR Co-Director Susan Wachter remarks on the rise of adult children moving in with their parents on CBS. Housing
News August 4, 2026 Birch, Rodas author op-ed on AI Governance Penn IUR's research in AI governance led by Eugenie Birch and Mauricio Rodas in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Urban Development
News August 1, 2026 Wachter on how the American Dream is faring at 250 Susan Wachter featured in Yahoo Finance on how the American Dream is faring as the U.S. turns 250  Housing
News July 30, 2026 Susan Wachter on the Great Postponement Hard work isn’t enough to achieve the American Dream anymore, says Penn IUR's Susan Wachter.  Housing
News July 30, 2026 Eugenie L. Birch Receives the 2026 Sir Peter Hall Award for Lifetime Achievement in Planning History from the International Planning History Society International Planning History Society announces Eugenie L. Birch as the recipient of the 2026 Sir Peter Hall Award for Lifetime Achievement in Planning History. 
News July 29, 2026 Susan Wachter on The State of the American Dream at 250 Penn IUR Co-Director Susan Wachter writes on the state of the American Dream at 250 in Knowledge at Wharton. Housing
News July 27, 2026 Regulating Transportation in an Era of Change Penn IUR Faculty Fellow Leslie Richards explores regulatory and policy shifts in the transportation sector.  Urban Development
News July 13, 2026 Is Buying a Home Still the Way to Wealth? Some Young Americans Aren't Sure Susan Wachter weighs in for Bloomberg on whether buying a house is still a good investment for American youth.  Susan Wachter Housing
News June 29, 2026 Susan Wachter Explores the History of the 30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage on The Wall Street Journal's What's News Podcast Penn IUR's Susan Wachter (Wharton) and Penn IUR Scholar Edward Glaeser (Harvard) are featured in the Wall Street Journal podcast "Owning a Piece of America." Susan Wachter Edward Glaeser Housing
News June 12, 2026 Sellers are pulling homes off market at fastest pace in years. Here's why. Penn IUR's Susan Wachter notes a "re-freezing the housing market" in a recent piece by ABC News. Housing
News June 5, 2026 Trump administration’s plan to spin off mortgage giants Fannie and Freddie faces new uncertainty Penn IUR's Susan Wachter tells CNN that efforts to spin off Fannie and Freddie appear to have stalled. Housing
News June 2, 2026 Alstom strengthens U.S. rail future through partnerships with academic institutions Leslie Richards, founder and director of the Transportation Initiative at Penn, welcomes partnership with Alstom to bridge transportation research and real-world practice. Urban Development
News May 20, 2026 Why are so many young women buying their own homes? “Young women increasingly have the resources to set up their own homes,” Penn IUR's Susan Wachter told The Times. Housing
News May 15, 2026 Listed median rents across the 50 largest metro areas decreased in April Penn IUR's Susan Wachter notes units coming to market years from now will be impacted by today's higher costs, particularly for fuel costs. Housing
News May 8, 2026 Special Briefing on Boosting Infrastructure Investment for Global Cities: Lessons from the $4 Trillion U.S. Municipal Bond Market NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC) will host an event on May 14th. This will be a special briefing exploring how global cities and subnational governments can adopt attributes of the $4 trillion U.S. municipal bond market to drive private investment in public infrastructure. State & Local Finance
News May 5, 2026 Home prices rose in most metro areas, but the market remains sluggish, report finds A Straight Arrow News report highlights why the U.S. housing market remains sluggish even as home prices rise in the majority of metro areas.  Housing
News May 5, 2026 Penn Almanac: 2026 Penn IUR Lawrence C. Nussdorf Urban Leadership Award Recipients A Penn Almanac article highlights the 21st Annual Urban Leadership Forum hosted by Penn IUR, where global leaders and scholars gathered to examine the theme “Guiding Urban Futures in Uncertain Times.”  Anchor Institutions

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