Behavioral Research in Real Estate: A Search for the Boundaries

TLDR

The article reviews the emerging view of real property experts as problem solvers bounded by cognitive limitations, contrasting normative and descriptive processes, biasing heuristics, and the role of feedback. This article examines the growing body of behavioral literature in real estate. The authors explore potential real estate research avenues and methodologies across finance, economics, expert decision making, marketing, spatial analytics, organizational behavior, and legal regulation. Executive Summary.

Abstract

Executive Summary. This article examines the growing body of behavioral literature in real estate. The emerging view of real property experts as problem solvers bounded by cognitive limitations is reviewed. Normative versus descriptive processes are presented as are potentially biasing heuristics and the role of feedback. In separate sections, the authors explore avenues of potential real estate research and methodologies in finance and traditional economics, expert decision making, marketing and markets, spatial analytics, organizational behavior and development, and the legal and regulatory environment.