REAL 740: Real Estate Investments Master Syllabus
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Course Description
This class focuses on the analysis of complex real estate investment opportunities with an emphasis on evaluating investment feasibility. Students will be provided with case study materials for actual commercial real estate offerings in the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area over the past decade, but they will not be given specific information about the results of each sale or acquisition. Students will then be tasked with reviewing the offering information, conducting any necessary additional research, and developing investment pro formas. Students must prepare a recommendation as to whether or not they believe each opportunity is (or was) worth pursuing. All assumptions must be supported and recommendations must articulate a strategy to overcome the critical hurdles every property owner must confront when underwriting a potential acquisition. The actual results of each deal will be discussed after student presentations.
Students are expected to already have mastery of real estate financial analysis skills and be familiar with real estate markets, the development process, and legal issues impacting real estate.
Learning Objectives
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the complex factors affecting real estate investment opportunities
- Conduct real estate investment feasibility analysis
- Apply the financial analytical techniques used in making real estate investment decisions
- Analyze different financing options and evaluate their impact on project returns
- Analyze relevant market factors such as competing properties and pipeline development
- Identify zoning and regulatory hurdles and propose how they can be overcome
- Apply an understanding of the development process to the analysis of investment opportunities
Approach to Learning
This course involves an interactive, discussion-based lecture format with individual performance measures.
Topics Covered:
- Supply, Demand, and market factors
- The development pipeline
- Zoning and regulatory hurdles
- Legal hurdles, such as agreements and tenant rights issues
- Property specific hurdles, such as deferred maintenance and CapEx reserves
- Financing hurdles, such as capital sources, financing terms, and guarantees
- Pro forma hurdles, such as returns and attracting equity
- Quantitative financial measures, including: IRR, ROI, NPV, NOI, and capitalization rates
Representative Text and Learning Materials
In addition to case study material, the following are examples of the types of books that may be used as required or supplementary material for the class:
- Commercial Real Estate Analysis & Investment, Geltner, David, Norman G. Miller et. al., Mason, OH: Thomson South-Western, 2007, 3rd Edition.
Student Responsibilities
Students are expected to attend all classes and are responsible for keeping themselves updated on any changes on the course website. In case of absence, it is the student’s responsibility to catch up with the material covered. Without advance notice and approval, no extensions or options to retake are provided if for any missed quizzes, exams, or assignments due to absence.
Methods of Student Evaluation
Exams, quizzes, class participation, homework assignments, discussion of assigned readings, and presentation of case study feasibility analysis.
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