The COVID-19 lockdown is squeezing real estate from all sides and threatens to burst the housing and mortgage bubble

This is how long coronavirus lives on kitchen/bathroom surfaces and airborne — and how to stay safe

COVID-19 is most similar to the SARS virus, but that doesn’t explain why it has become a much larger outbreak, the CDC, UCLA and Princeton joint study concluded

COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, is “stable for several hours to days” in aerosols and on surfaces, including plastic and stainless steel, according to a study published in the latest edition of the peer-reviewed New England Journal of Medicine.

The study was coauthored by scientists at the National Institutes of Health, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, UCLA and Princeton University. It was made available in print form on Monday, and aims to provide more clarity on the virus’s contagiousness.

This is how long coronavirus survived:

• Cardboard: up to 24 hours

• Airborne: up to 2-3 hours

• Copper: up to 4 hours

• Plastic and stainless steel: up to 2-3 days

The results of the study provide additional insight into the stability of the new SARS-CoV-2, or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, and suggest that people may acquire the virus through the air and after touching contaminated objects, according to the authors.

Factors effecting why the virus remains “stable”:

• Humidity and temperature

• Air-conditioning

• Open windows

• General air quality

• Size of the room

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SARS-CoV-1, the disease that infected more than 8,000 people in China in 2002 to 2003, is the human coronavirus most closely related to the latest outbreak. They behaved most similarly, which unfortunately fails to explain why COVID-19 has become a much larger outbreak, the authors said.

One theory: Emerging evidence suggests that people infected with COVID-19 might be spreading the virus without recognizing, or prior to recognizing, the symptoms. This would make disease-control measures that were effective against SARS-CoV-1 “less effective against its successor.”

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In contrast to SARS-CoV-1, most secondary cases of the latest coronavirus transmission appear to be occurring in community settings rather than in health-care settings, the authors wrote. However, the latter are also vulnerable to the introduction and spread of COVID-19.

Health professionals recommend:

• Staying home whether you are feeling sick or not

• Washing your hands frequently, especially after visiting the store or pharmacy, or using public transport such as a public city bike or transportation

• Avoiding close contact with people who are sick, and staying at least six feet apart from other people whether they are sick or not

• Avoiding touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.

• Covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throwing the tissue in the trash.

• Cleaning and disinfecting frequently-touched objects and surfaces with a cleaning spray or wipe.

Coronavirus had infected at least 124,686 people in the U.S. as of Sunday morning and killed at least 2,191 people, 672 of which were in New York City, according to Johns Hopkins University. New York State accounts for roughly 50% of the U.S. total, which accounts for 18% of the global total. Worldwide, there were 678,720 confirmed cases of the virus and 31,700 reported deaths.

Access and availability of testing in the U.S. is one of the most pressing concerns for Americans. Some hospitals have implemented drive-through testing sites, while the Trump administration has promoted a site built by Verily, Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL-1.87% life-sciences arm.

How COVID-19 is transmitted

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