I am an Assistant Professor of Real Estate Development at the Tulane University School of Architecture and Built Environment.
My research draws on the disciplines of planning, geography, urban sociology, and urban economics to examine how the interrelated factors of residential mobility, neighborhood change, and housing policy shape socio-spatial landscapes with material consequences to the life chances and wellbeing of individuals and communities. I focus on how these processes and outcomes vary by race and class and how they exacerbate or alleviate urban inequality, particularly regarding access to well-resourced, high-opportunity neighborhoods. I primarily leverage quantitative and spatial methods using a wide variety of data sources (e.g., survey data, census data, administrative data, and consumer reference data) and conduct studies that are locally grounded as well as national in scope.
Peer-reviewed articles:
Lee, Yeonhwa & Reina, Vincent. (2024). Neighborhood satisfaction and gentrification: A study of Philadelphia. Urban Studies. [Link to article]
Reina, Vincent & Lee, Yeonhwa. (2023). COVID-19 and emergency rental assistance: Impact on rent arrears, debt, and the wellbeing of renters in Philadelphia. RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, Special Issue: The Socioeconomic Impacts of COVID-19. [Link to article]
Lee, Y., Kemp, P., Reina, V. (2022). Drivers of housing (un)affordability in the advanced economies: A review and new evidence. Housing Studies, 37(10), 1739-1752. [Link to article]
Cited in the White House Council of Economic Advisers’ 2024 Economic Report of the President (Mar 2024)
Research reports:
Aiken, C., Goldstein, S., Lee, Y. (2022). Trends and challenges in the Philadelphia rental market. Community Legal Services of Philadelphia. [Link to report] [Link to The Philadelphia Inquirer]
You can reach me at ylee14 [at] tulane [dot] edu.
