The Center will address real estate applications, including real estate technology (real estate FinTech; shared economy; and smart real estate), new ways of design (design for flexibility, focus on physical distancing and public health, etc.), innovations, and real estate entrepreneurship. 

The following is a brief overview of the primary scope of the research proposed for the RETDIC and the faculty associated with the Center currently engaged in research in these areas.

Real Estate Technology –  This area involves the integration of ideas from the software engineering, statistical modeling, and traditional real estate disciplines to design modern cost-effective alternatives to legacy processes related to the purchase, valuation, funding, management, and rental of real property. Specific applications include the development of browser-based residential real estate visualization platforms such as Zillow, Trulia, and Redfin which display aggregate MLS listings, related prior sales, and property tax information, and provide a platform to connect potential buyers with local real estate agents. Model-based valuation software such as that developed by House Canary is an exciting new area where machine learning regression techniques are utilized to estimate property market values; such tools are being increasingly used during appraisal processes. Novel funding mechanisms including automatic mortgage evaluation and approval systems, crowd-funded collateralized loans for property purchases, and community-funded commercial real estate (and associated secondary markets) are modernizing the manner in which property is purchased. Peer-to-Peer rental platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo are directly connecting property owners and potential short-term renters as well as create networks of management and cleaning professions to aid in property maintenance. In addition, the center will be able to leverage the synergy of researchers from the Center for Big Data with complementary expertise to solve big data problems in real estate that are otherwise difficult to tackle in one single domain. Both centers will work together to develop a repository of real estate- oriented computing solutions, toolkits, etc. for public access and use in support of community building.

Furthermore, opportunities will be explored for private sector corporations in the building products/building systems sectors to support the center, particularly in the area of new technologies to optimize the construction, operation, and ongoing maintenance of facilities and to support new developments such as electric vehicle charging and optimization. Another research area is electromagnetic shielding. This might be relevant in view of the large high power antennas and transmission lines in residential communities.

Real Estate Design – The primary focus area involves new ways of design and thinking related to real estate, including new office design prioritizing physical distancing and flexibility; creative open floor plans; unconventional workplace design; energy-efficient design; design of smart communities. The focus will also include an analysis of how real estate properties fit within the context of the larger community, the relationship between properties and existing/needed civil infrastructure, and how redevelopment advances community sustainability and resilience. 

Research, demonstration, and technical assistance activities will encompass a wide range of building- scale design and innovation topics, including grid-interactive buildings; decarbonization and electrification; building campus and portfolio-scale microgrids; community solar; building/electric vehicle interface; climate adaptation, disaster resilience, and risk mitigation; passive survivability; urban agriculture/architecture; advanced construction technologies; and advanced controls for building operation optimization at the facility and portfolio scales. 

Finally, prefabrication and robotic construction are poised to affect the construction industry and the affordability of real estate. According to an Oxford University study of American labor markets, automation will reduce construction labor costs by more than 50% in the next decade. This will be an important evolution and could warrant its own “activity.”

Real Estate Innovation – This research will leverage open source, social media, commercial databases, and resources from NJII, VentureLink, and the NJ Innovation Acceleration Center to identify and analyze disruptive innovations in real estate. The innovation acceleration research relates to novel investment and management strategies, creative social medial marketing, and business incubation of innovative products and services.