The course is designed to give students an understanding of real property ownership, transactions and the general workings of the real estate industry. It prepares them for further study of the real estate profession and/or to participate in real estate rental or purchase transactions as a consumer. For many students this will be their first undergraduate real estate courses and it is a prerequisite course to most undergraduate courses.

Students learning objectives: Students will learn about the essential element of the real estate transaction process and the parties involved; be exposed to the basics of appraisal, valuation, financing and taxation of real estate; and learn about fair housing and environmental issues that affect real estate.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with experience in the real estate field and a passion to share that experience with students and make them want to pursue further education in real estate.

Every property is unique, therefore the appraisal of real estate presents many challenges and has a strong influence on the financial viability of both existing buildings and the development process. General models for valuing commercial property, industrial property, and land will be introduced. The role of appraisals and different concepts of value will be examined.

Students learning objectives: Students will learn about the different roles of and approaches to appraisal. They will be able to distinguish appropriate valuation methods for different concepts and roles and apply those methods to practical situations. They will also be able to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different types of development appraisal.

Instructor preferred qualities: Experience with an appraisal of a diverse set of property types, preferably a practicing real estate appraiser.

An introductory class to real estate finance. Considers the financing of developments, investment in commercial properties as well as the residential mortgage market. Considers how real estate differs from other assets and how to analyze the attractiveness of investment opportunities.

Students learning objectives: Students will be able to analyze and calculate mortgage repayments based upon a variety of different mortgage structures. They will understand how different financing structures can lead to different returns and have different risk factors for both lender and borrower.

Instructor preferred qualities: Strong training and experience in real estate finance with the ability to introduce financial modeling to students using spreadsheets and applied examples.

Focuses on the development and implementation of active and passive portfolio management strategies for institutional quality real estate investment portfolios. Modern portfolio theory and other tools are used to establish real estate allocation in a mixed-asset context; and to manage real estate portfolios among investment and financial structures spanning private/public, equity/debt, property type and geographic/economic regions.

Students learning objectives: Students will learn to conceptualize key issues facing real estate portfolio managers and evaluate how these issues impact on practice in different sectors and from different perspectives. They will analyze investment data using quantitative techniques, to identify portfolio strategies and assess manager performance. They will be able to apply investment strategy and portfolio management principles to practical real estate problems.

Instructor preferred qualities: Training and professional experience in real estate asset and portfolio management. Ability to communicate complex financial concepts to students who are not finance majors.

The course provides an overview of different data collection methods, basic statistical techniques and their appropriate application based on the size and type of various real estate and socio-economic datasets. Students will have the opportunity to determine the appropriate method and critically assess their findings. No previous knowledge of statistics is required, and all applications will be on Excel and R open-source software.

Students learning objectives: Determination of the appropriate data collection method – methodology and hypothesis testing based on the issue examined. Analysis of descriptive statistics and inferences and decision-making implications. Understanding of statistical analysis in Excel/R. Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with experience in basic statistics and application on socioeconomic and/or real estate data for example analyzing commercial or residential real estate prices and rents or producing market reports.

Introduces students to basic elements of real estate market studies for different uses. Includes basic steps regardless of real estate use, followed by an analysis of data sources, public policy issues affecting cities and their economy, and resources available to analyze different market patterns. Students learning objectives: The course aims to provide students with an understanding of the drivers of real estate demand and supply as well as to equip them with the analytical tools necessary to conduct market analysis and become informed and critical users of market data and studies.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with training in real estate and urban economics and with experience producing and using market analysis.

The course provides an overview of multiple ways datasets can be visualized which span from Excel to R and Tableau. It is expected that students taking this course will have already taken a basic statistics course or another course on R software as this course will built on the basics of the statistical software.

Students learning objectives: Understanding of various techniques in visualizing data and the appropriate data structures. Critical thinking in selecting the data visualization method based on the dataset, utilization of different software tools in data visualization.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with different ways in visualizing data including experience with Excel, R and Tableau.

The course explores creative approaches to real estate development project financing involving partnerships between private developers and public agencies often combined with public financing as well as tax and regulatory incentives offered at various levels of government throughout the United States.

Students learning objectives: Understanding of various public financing and incentive programs. Developing the ability to structure a financially and legally viable private-public deal.

Instructor preferred qualities: An Individual with experience in private/public financing development and/or acquisition deals.

The course provides an overview of how the use of technology in various areas of real estate is disrupting the traditional way of doing real estate business. Students will have an opportunity to understand how PropTech is affecting real estate – from Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Internet of Things (IoT), as well as how the shared economy affects real estate. Additionally, students will have an opportunity to understand how FinTech, blockchain and asset tokenization are impacting real estate decision making.

Students learning objectives: Understanding the effect of different technological innovations on real estate and how they disrupted the typical way of doing business. Explore the most recent innovations in real estate and how they may affect future market trends.

Instructor preferred qualities: An Individual with experience in application of new technologies in real estate and an extensive network touching on innovations currently applied and those pursued in the future.

The students are introduced to negotiation theory, strategy and psychology of effective negotiations. The course provides the student with the opportunity to develop skills and build confidence through a series of simulations of deal making and dispute resolution. Emphasis is placed on negotiation exercises and role-playing.

Students learning objectives: Learning the fundamentals and best practices of negotiations and conflict resolution. Developing self-awareness of one’s strengths and weaknesses as a negotiator. Learning to manage the tension between creating value and claiming value in negotiations.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with experience in negotiating real estate deals.

The course focuses on preparing students for their future careers in real estate, by allowing them to understand their core competencies, the real estate roles for which they are best suited, and the way they need to prepare and present themselves to future employers. Students will have the opportunity to understand the most effective communication tools they should apply considering real estate companies of various scales, professional and cultural background.

Students learning objectives: Define their skillsets and ways to communicate them through a resume. Understand how effective business communication is critical in hiring and professional advancement. Implement effective ways of improving job prospects through focused networking and informational interviews.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with HR experience at various real estate related organizations or a varied career in a diversity of roles, including management.

This course introduces students to developing real estate projects; to the people and organizations involved throughout the development process, and to analytical techniques used in testing project feasibility and/or measuring the creation of economic value.

Students learning objectives: Identifying the essential steps of real estate development as well as the variety of organizations involved in real estate development and how they operate. Determining the physical and financial feasibility of a project and factors that influence project feasibility.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with experience with various aspects of development and an extensive professional network who could offer additional insight.

Students work within a team structure to develop a real estate project either under a competition umbrella or as a standalone project. An RFQ will be provided to the students describing the scope and any special conditions that are to be assumed by them. At a minimum the students will deliver: market analysis, conceptual land use and building design, code analysis, cost estimating, financial pro forma, financing plan, deal structure, risk assessment including sensitivity analysis, marketing plan and exit strategy. The selected site can range from a single building site to a full block or a neighborhood.

Students learning objectives: Learn to work in an interdisciplinary team to accomplish complex and diverse tasks, Apply site analysis techniques focusing on: physical, zoning and market evaluation, Develop a development proposal for a site including design, project economics, sponsor objectives, underwriting, risk and sensitivity analysis, phasing, absorption and exit strategies.

Instructor preferred qualities: An individual with development, site planning experience and desire to co-teach with architects and planners.