Current Research
Member organizations conduct housing research, publish papers, and participate in outreach activities. Find out more about current research activities by the National Consortium of Housing Research Centers.
University of Georgia
Housing and Demographics Research Center
Noteworthy projects, publications, and activities for 2009 included:
- Research project: Atiles, J.H. Natural Gas Customer Education. Georgia Public Service Commission.
- Research project: Atiles, J.H. Radon Education Program. Georgia Department of Community Affairs.
- Research project: Atiles, J.H. Weatherization Monitoring/Education Program (Arra). Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (DOE).
- Research project: Worley, J.W., Speir, R.A., Atiles, J.H., Sumner, P.E., Czarick, M., Hawkins, G.L., & Harrison, K.A. Energy Conservation in Georgia 2009. Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (DOE).
- Carswell, A.T. (2009). Does housing counseling change consumer financial behaviors? Evidence from Philadelphia. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 30(4), 339-356.
- Helping community needs as part of Georgia Initiative for Community Housing (GICH)
- Hosted conference for Real Estate Solutions: Best Practices for Today's Housing Market
2009 Annual Report (PDF)
Purdue University
Housing Research Center
The Center worked on many projects, publications, and activities for 2009, including:
- Patel, Saumyang and M. Hastak. (2010). Post Disaster Housing for 200 families (working title), MS Thesis Purdue University.
- Hastak, M. (2009). “Post Disaster Housing – A U.S. Perspective.” Invited Speaker at the International Symposium on Wenchuan Earthquake Reconstruction Efforts (ISWERE), Dujiangyan City, Sichuan Province, China, September 11-13, 2009
- A team from Purdue and Shanghai Jiao-Tong University, China, won the bronze medal at the Mondialogo Engineering competition initiated by UNESCO and Daimler. The proposed project “Building Rural Houses After Disaster in Dujiangyan Earthquake Areas of Sichuan province, China”, targeted reconstruction of affected region after the 2008 Earthquake. This contest is held every two years, as a worldwide competition among engineers to address challenges of 21st century. The Purdue team comprised of Nader Naderpajouh and Saumyang Patel and was advised by Prof. M. Hastak.
- Dr. Karava (in collaboration with three faculty members in the Architectural Engineering Group at Purdue) has designed a two storey outdoor fully-re-configurable test-building (floor area 500 ft2) that will be located at Bowen Laboratory and will facilitate research on innovative building-integrated technologies within the context of net-zero houses. Construction of the facility will start in March 2010.
NAHB Research Center, Inc.
Many initiatives were conducted in 2009, including:
- National Green Building Certification
- Commentary for the National Green Building Standard ICC-700
- Ganguly, I.; Koebel, T.; Cantrell, R. (2009). A Categorical Modeling Approach to Analyzing NewProduct Adoption and Usage in the Context of the Building Materials Industry, Technological Forecasting & Social Change
- NAHB Research Center will be a monthly contributor to Professional Builder Magazine and a quarterly contributor to Professional Remodeler Magazine
- Quality Management System – Hot Spot Videos
- Assessment of FEMA P695 on Seismic Design of Light-Frame Wood Residential Construction – will be reported on by the CTRSC – Construction Technology and Research Sub Committee.
- Development of Green Building Educators' Toolkit
2009 Annual Report (PDF)
Michigan State University
Housing Education and Research Center (HERC)
The Housing Education and Research Center worked on several research projects and reports, including:
- Impact of LEED projects on Electrical Contractors, 2008-2009
- Sustainable Planning, Design and Construction: Value Added Impact on Built Environment Industries, 2006-2009
- Project Delivery Methods for Electrical Contractors in Energy Efficient Markets, 2008-2009
- Adoption of Convention Fall Protection Technologies in Residential Framing
- Michigan Energy Code Training Program
- Green Building Guidelines in the U.S. and India, 2007-2010
- Executive Training Program for professionals form Korean National Housing Corporation
2009 Annual Report (PDF)
Cornell University
Housing Research and Education Program
Activities, publications, and honors for 2009 included:
- Mark Pierce held several training classes to teach Cornell students volunteering to visit houses across Tompkins County and do basic energy audits for the homeowners
- Laquatra, J. and M. Pierce (2009). Taking construction site waste management to the next level. Journal of Green Building, 4(4): 1 - 4.
- Forsyth, A.; E. Greenhouse; N. Wells; L. Maxwell; J. Laquatra; D. Kay; J. Tiffany (2009). Residential environments for older Americans and their sustainability: from the room to the region. Proceedings of the Aging and Environment Conference, Ithaca, NY: July 23 - 24, 2009.
- Potter, G. and J. Laquatra (2009). Residential lighting: history, energy efficiency, and health effects, Proceedings of the 2009 Annual Conference of the Housing Education and Research Association, Santa Fe, NM: pp. 169-174.
- Laquatra, J. Trainer, Reducing Asthma Triggers and Lead Poisoning Hazards in Homes. Funding source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
- J. Laquatra was listed in Who's Who in America and Who's Who in the World, 2009.
2009 Annual Report (PDF)
Penn State University
Pennsylvania Housing Research Center
PHRC's activities and accomplishments for 2009 include:
- PHRC delivered 69 technical workshops and webinars to 3,428 builders, remodelers, educators, design professionals and code officials
- PHRC developed a training plan to address training needs for residential sprinkler systems that will be required when the 2009 IRC is adopted
- Continuation of the series of short technical documents - 2-4 pages in length - that address specific issues identified by builders or remodelers
- Myers, T., and B. Kasal. May 2009. Analysis of the International Residential Code 2006 Bracing Requirements for Pennsylvania. PHRC Report No.108. Pennsylvania Housing Research Center. 123 p.
- Development of the 2009 Pennsylvania Alternative Residential Energy Provisions
- Analysis of Zero Energy Homes – Technical, Constructability, and Public Policy Challenges
- 2 programs focusing on training for the factory-built housing industries developed for the Modular Housing Training Institute (MHTI) and the Manufactured Housing Resource Center (MHRC)
- Guidelines for Efficient Basement Insulation
2009 Annual Report (PDF)
Virginia Technical Institute
Center for Housing Research
Virgina Tech had several significant accomplishments, including:
- The Center for Housing Research completed a national study for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and two National Science Foundation (NSF) studies of how zoning regulations impact the placement of manufactured homes in urban communities.
- A project sponsored by the General Services Administration and run through the D.C. Office of Planning dealing with housing and transportation issues regarding future location of federal offices.
- Ted Koebel and Marilyn Cavell performed and completed work for a housing needs and market analysis for the Northern Neck area.
- Casey Dawkins served on the Governor’s Task Force on Foreclosure Prevention.
- The Center began a green building initiative to conduct a case study of a green neighborhood being developed in Blacksburg, Virginia.
- The Center prepared for merging with the Metropolitan Institute, a nationally recognized Virginia Tech Center located in Alexandria, Virginia.
2009 Annual Report (PDF)