R/ECON Conference on April 18 a Smorgasbord of Facts and Stats: Economic Initiatives, Residential Market Prospects, National Trends, State Forecast

Rutgers Economic Advisory Service (R/ECON) semiannual subscriber forecast and conference will cover Christie administration business initiatives; New Jersey’s economic environment, including the housing market; national economic trends; and New Jersey’s forecast.  R/ECON is presented by the Center for Urban Policy Research, part of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

The event is free and open to the public.

Kim Guadagno, elected New Jersey’s first lieutenant governor in 2009 and who also serves as the state’s 33rd secretary of state, will discuss “New Jersey Economic Initiatives: Progress and Outlook.” Guadagno chairs the Red Tape Review Commission, which is engaged in an ongoing review and reform of New Jersey’s regulatory process. Professor Karl “Chip” Case is a founding partner of the real estate research firm Fiserv Case Shiller Weiss Inc., which created the S&P Case Shiller Index of real estate prices. He is a professor emeritus of economics at Wellesley College, where he held the Coman and Hepburn Chair in Economics and taught 34 years. He is a senior fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University and recently was elected president of the Boston Economic Club. He will discuss “Home Prices: Problems and Prospects.” James W. Hughes, dean of the Bloustein School, will speak about national economic trends. Nancy H. Mantell, R/ECON director, will provide New Jersey’s short-term and long-term economic forecasts. University Professor and economist Joseph J. Seneca will explain the state’s overall economic environment.