Alex Schwartz

Professor, Public and Urban Policy Program, The New School

The Clarkson Chair in Affordable Housing

The Clarkson Chair visiting week at the University at Buffalo (UB), State University of New York, will take place from March 10–14, 2025. The event, organized by the School of Architecture and Planning at UB, will focus on affordable housing. To participate, please complete the program registration form.

Alex Schwartz is Professor of Public and Urban Policy at the New School. He holds a doctorate in Urban Planning and Policy Development from Rutgers University. Professor Schwartz’s research centers on housing and community development, including public housing and other affordable housing programs, mixed-income housing, and fair housing. While most of his research has focused on housing issues in the United States, he has also studied housing policy in the United Kingdom, and has consulted for the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI).

The image is the cover of a book titled "Housing Policy in the United States" by Alex F. Schwartz. The cover features a collage of black and white photographs depicting various types of housing and buildings. The title "HOUSING POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES" is prominently displayed in large white letters in the center of the cover. Below the title, in smaller white letters, it says "Fourth Edition." The author's name, "ALEX F. SCHWARTZ," is written at the top of the cover in white letters. In the bottom right corner, there is a logo with a stylized "R," representing the publisher.

Schwartz, A. F. (n.d.). Housing policy in the United States (4th ed.) [Book cover]. Routledge.

Professor Schwartz is the author of Housing Policy in the United States: 4th Edition (Routledge, 2021). He is co-author with Rachel Meltzer of Policy Analysis as Problem Solving: A Flexible and Evidence-Based Framework (Routledge second edition 2025). His research has appeared in such journals as Cityscape, Economic Development Quarterly, Housing Policy Debate, Housing Studies, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, the Journal of Urban Affairs, and the Journal of the American Planning Association. In addition, he served as the Managing Editor for North America for the international journal Housing Studies from 2010 to 2020.

Professor Schwartz is Director of the New School's Urban Policy Lab, in which teams of graduate students advise government agencies and nonprofit organizations on a wide array of policy and management issues. He also teaches Policy Analysis, and Housing Policy. In the spring of 2019 New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed Professor Schwartz to the city's Rent Guidelines Board, which determines maximum rent increases for nearly 1 million units of rent stabilized housing.

Program Lineup

March 10–14, 2025

Attend the lecture, seminar, roundtable, etc., throughout the week.

Headshot of Alex Schwartz.

Alex Schwartz, Professor, Public and Urban Policy Program, The New School.

Featured Events

Housing affordability has finally come to the fore of public discourse. For decades, millions of renters have struggled to afford their homes, and millions more have lacked the income and assets to purchase a home. Yet the lack of affordable housing has only recently become a front-burner issue. More often than not, the nation’s housing affordability challenges are framed as a consequence of a housing shortage. I will show that housing is intrinsically unaffordable to low-income households, and that increasing the supply would at best make for marginal improvements in the affordability situation. Any far-reaching solution to the nation’s housing affordability crisis will require a big increase in subsidy—both for renting and buying homes.

Public Lecture

Wed., March 12, 2025
6:00–7:30 p.m.
403 Hayes Hall

AIA approved continuing education logo.

The School of Architecture and Planning is an AIA CES Approved Provider. This course is AIA CES Registered and approved for 1 Learning Unit (LU).

CM | 1.5.

AICP members can earn Certification Maintenance (CM) credits for this activity: 1.5 CM #9307285.
More information about AICP’s CM program can be found at www.planning.org/cm.
AICP members must be in attendance for the duration of the event in order to receive CM Credit. Please remember to log your credits online using the following event ID: #9307285.

Technical Research Seminar

For Researchers Interested in Data Sources on Housing, with a Focus on Affordability and Vacancy

Wed., March 12, 2025
10:30–12 p.m.
401 Hayes Hall

  • Alex Schwartz: Exploring Census and ACS housing data
  • Camden Miller: Limitations of ACS data in capturing renter trends
  • Jason Knight: Aggregating local property data for analysis
  • Matthew Roland: Leveraging proprietary real estate data for residential insights
  • Ernest Sternberg: Panel wrap-up and audience discussion

Published March 10, 2025

HOME & Sustainable Living Roundtable

A multidisciplinary discussion on the University at Buffalo’s HOME and Sustainable Living Initiative, exploring research and strategies for addressing affordable housing challenges locally and nationally.

Thur., March 13, 2025
12:00–3:00 p.m.
401 Hayes Hall

  • Robert Shibley: HOME and Sustainable Living Facilitation
  • Jason Knight: Affordable Housing Research in New York State
  • Alex Schwartz: Affordable Housing Research Nationally
  • Heather Abraham: Law School Perspective
  • Todd Sage: Social Work Perspective
Future of Housing Policy, Practitioner Perspective

A panel on housing policy solutions for market gaps in Western New York. Topics may include accessory dwelling units, multifamily housing, land banks, “missing middle” housing, and policy challenges across government levels.

Thur., March 13, 2025
3:30–5:00 p.m.
301 Hayes Hall

  • Laurie Stillwell: Director of Community Development, Town of Amherst
  • Jason Yots: Developer and Attorney, Cannon, Heyman & Weiss
  • Kate Lockhart: Senior Policy and Research Advisor, Senator Sean Ryan
  • Jason Knight: Associate Professor; Coordinator, Urban and Regional Planning Program, Department of Government, Planning, and Philosophy, SUNY Buffalo State
TOPICS: 2025, Alumni, Events, Perspectives - Alumni Speaker Series, School of Architecture and Planning (SAP), 2025, Public Programs, Career Development