Courses
The Abbey MRED+D's interdisciplinary curriculum goes beyond tradition to foreground design + urbanism, sustainability + resilience, and equity + inclusion, alongside the hard skills--finance, construction, law, market analysis--every developer needs to learn. Graduates emerge uniquely prepared to tackle the grand challenges facing contemporary cities, with plenty of hands-on experience to complement classroom instruction.
Required Courses
- RDEV 200: Construction + Development Project Management (2)
- RDEV 209: Integrated Development, Architecture + Urbanism (3)
- RDEV 210: Real Estate Economics + Market Analysis (3)
- RDEV 220: Real Estate Development Finance (4)
- RDEV 225: Applications in Real Estate Finance (2)
- RDEV 230: Public-Private Partnerships, Strategies + Tools (3)
- RDEV 235: Real Estate Capital Markets (3)
- RDEV 240: Professional Practice of Real Estate Development (3)
- RDEV 250: Land Development Law + Regulations (3)
- RDEV 260: Sustainable Real Estate Development (2)
- RDEV 270: Development + Design Studio (4)
- RDEV 277: Equitable + Resilient Development (2)
- RDEV 280: Capstone Project (2)
- *RDEV 285: Capstone Prep (1)
*Only required for students pursuing an Independent Capstone.
Sample Student Program
Summer
- RDEV 209: Integrated Development, Architecture + Urbanism (3)
- RDEV 210: Real Estate Economics + Market Analysis (3)
- RDEV 220: Real Estate Development Finance (4)
- RDEV 277: Equitable + Resilient Development (2)
Fall
- RDEV 200: Sustainable Building Systems + Construction (2)
- RDEV 225: Advanced Real Estate Finance (2)
- RDEV 230: Public-Private Partnerships, Strategies + Tools (3)
- RDEV 250: Land Development Law + Regulations (3)
- RDEV 260: Sustainable Real Estate Development (2)
- RDEV 285: Capstone Prep (1)
- Elective(s) (0-4)
Spring
- RDEV 235: Real Estate Capital Markets (3)
- RDEV 240: Professional Practice of Real Estate Development (3)
- RDEV 270: Development + Design Studio (4)
- RDEV 280: Capstone Project (2)
- Elective(s) (0-4)
All students participate in a national Urban Land Institute Annual Fall Meeting, and complete a capstone project. Capstone project topics are expected to vary in terms of product type, site/location, and focus; students select from one (or a combination) of options: (1) professional client, (2) independent research, (3) project case study, or (4) real estate development project, or opt to synthesize their coursework to complete a directed capstone proposing a program for a predetermined site.
Course Descriptions
- RDEV 200: CONSTRUCTION + DEVELOPMENT PROJECT MANAGEMENT (2)
- RDEV 209: INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT, ARCHITECTURE + URBANISM (3)
- RDEV 210: REAL ESTATE ECONOMICS + MARKET ANALYSIS (3)
- RDEV 220: REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT FINANCE (4)
- RDEV 225: APPLICATIONS IN REAL ESTATE FINANCE (2)
- RDEV 230: PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS, STRATEGIES + TOOLS (3)
- RDEV 235: REAL ESTATE CAPITAL MARKETS (3)
- RDEV 240: PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE OF REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT (3)
- RDEV 250: LAND DEVELOPMENT LAW + REGULATIONS (3)
- RDEV 260: SUSTAINABLE REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT (2)
- RDEV 270: DEVELOPMENT + DESIGN STUDIO (4)
- RDEV 277: EQUITABLE + RESILIENT DEVELOPMENT (2)
- RDEV 280: CAPSTONE PROJECT (2)
- RDEV 285: CAPSTONE PREP (1)
Construction + Sustainability is designed to give real estate development students a stronger knowledge of the concepts, materiality and methodologies surrounding the construction of buildings. The course reviews each of the major types of construction as classified by construction type. The aim is to develop a practical understanding of construction essentials through the lens of design. sustainability, and cost. Subjects will include a review of the building typology, structure, systems, rough and finish material, construction drawings, details, sequencing, code and the vocabulary that surrounds these topics. The course challenges students to analyze construction, design and sustainability with regard to the complex relationships between budget, best practices, functionality, community benefit, aesthetics, and risk to ultimately determine project feasibility.
This course is a primer on how development forces produces our streets, neighborhoods, towns, cities and metropolitan regions. It is focused on a cirtical understanding of development practices and their impact on urban form as well as the social, economic, cultural and environmental qualities of cities, aspiring to empower development and design professionals to actively participate in the creation of better urban places. It will also introduce concepts about site analysis, placemaking, urban design principles, building types and key design factors that influence building form, program, and real estate development. Class topics will attempt to connect the agency of design and the value that it adds to real estate development, explored through a review of selected lectures, case studies, and field trips. This course will investigate how development, architecture and urbanism are intertwined, built on the idea that cities are our most sustainable resource, holding the key to our social, economic, and culturally equitable future, as well as our planet’s environmental stewardship.
This course will provide students with a thorough grounding in the theories and methods of urban economics, as well as a complete introduction to professional methods in real estate market analysis. We will cover the full range of land uses and real estate product types, including mixed-use, TOD, affordable housing and other specialized development types. Students will learn to prepare professional-level real estate market analyses for real-world projects in complex urban environments.
This course introduces the fundamental technical concepts and analytical methods and tools for making investment and development decisions in real estate. Students will learn the essential tools to understand how real estate value is determined, created and influenced. We will focus on the basic building blocks and micro level analyses that pertain to the financial viability and projected performance of indiviudal properties and deals. We will learn to evaluate primarily real estate development projects and secondarily stabilied income properties. The main topics covered in this course include: 1) Real estate finance foundation fundamentals; 2) Proforma creation with pessimistic, bases and optimistic scenarios analyzed; 3) Leases; 4) Debt and equity structures and options; 5) Lease types; and 6) Introductory real estate taxation concepts.
This course is designed to facilitate a mastery of core finance and valuation skills required of real estate developers through a practical approach using real world examples / case studies. It is designed to develop students’ ability to think critically about how real estate value is created and develop analytical tools used to derive it. The primary emphasis in the course is on the acquisition, financing, and repositioning of real estate projects.
Public-private partnerships (PPPs or P3s) have emerged as a key means of catalyzing transformative urban development across the world. This course will primarily focus on PPPs that consist of a structured legal alliance between a public agency and private developer to achieve a real estate project and will provide practical tools ot cultivate effective alliances with the public sector to facilitate private develoopment. The course will focus on the key principles and techniques that lead to the creation and implementation of successful partnerships between the public and private sectors. It will explore how governments and developers must be willing to change their typical mindsets, do business in new and creative ways, foster enduring collaborations, and commit to ongoing transparency regarding all aspects of the deal. Using case studies from projects across the United States, the course will focus on how to undertake real estate developments with a public purpose to advance social, economic and/or enviornmental goals. The class will teach studetns the skills and knowledge to manage the complex processes, agreements and financing structures that are involved in public-private partnerships for real estate development.
Fundamentals of capital markets as they relate to real estate development–the final course in the MRED+D finance sequence, ensuring a thorough understanding of the finance principles necessary for professional real estate development. Full course description to come.
This class teaches the fundamental business practices of real estate development to equip students for careers in private as well as non-profit development. The course is taught by an experienced real estate development practitioner and will include a variety of guest lecturers in the field. Course topics will follow the life cycle/sequence of a real estate project’s development, including project conceptualization, financing, partnerships, site acquisition, zoning and permits, design, construction, marketing, sales or lease-up and financial reporting. The class will rely on active professional work products, reports, contracts, schedules and documents handled or produced by practitioners on a daily basis as course materials. Hands-on assignments will focus on work products expected from real estate project managers to synthesize information, inform decision, present a real estate development project to others and manage the development process. Upon completion of the course, students will have an understanding of the timing and sequence of events and decisions in the real estate development process and a familiarity with reports and work products associated with development management.
This course will introduce students to the various ways in which land development laws and regulations affect development patterns and will recognize that how we use urban, suburban and rural landscapes is largely a product of government determinations expressed through land use regulation. The course will explain how real estate projects are modified by land development laws and regulations through the planning stages, the design process, and the entitlement process, which ultimately determines the look and feel of the build environment. Upon completion of the course, students will interpret the legal framework and entitlement process for developing real estate and how to find and analyze the land use regulations affecting a given piece of property. Students will also assess how environmental laws and regulations governing the physical environment–such as contamination and wetlands–limit development potential or require permits from various agencies.
The Course will be structured around eight major concepts as defined below. By the conclusion of this course, students will be expected to have learned a quality understanding of these eight concepts:
1. Global climate change issues & real estate’s climate impact: Why sustainable real
estate development is imperative in every project and why it makes financial sense.
2. Government regulations and their impact on sustainable development.
3. Sustainable design & development strategies for 5 product types: master -planned
communities, office, retail, industrial, and multifamily.
4. Certification programs & checklists.
5. Sustainable design systems – passive, water, HVAC, refuse, renewables, batteries &
resilience.
6. Sustainable design sizing – utility usage planning & budgets.
7. Cost / benefits modeling for major sustainable building systems.
8. Understanding life cycle assessments.
9. Post occupancy analysis.
Studios use real development projects–both local and nonlocal domestic or international–to provide studetns with the experience and skills necessary to synthesize rela estate development + design projects. The course operates on the premise that development + design are both creative and analytical acts. As developers and designers, students need to understand: the development process, program determination, how development teams work, what makes good design and how it adds value, and how to craft a feasible, innovative project proposal which integrates ideals of equity, sustainability and community benefit into its core. The studio will integrate interdisciplinary projects teams of MRED+D and other CED graduate students (City Planning, Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Design). While the course is not intended to teach MRED+D candidates to be design experts nor teach design and planning students to be finance experts, by engaging in a studio process which incorporates both development and design considerations, students will become more sophisticated and critical participants in the act of shaping urban environments. Students will gather and evaluate market, construction and environmental data to inform design and program choices; evaluate the physical, market, and public policy constraints of a given site; apply best practices of redevelopment; advance innovative design solutions; and communicate their development proposals to a professional audience.
Cities and their inhabitants face increasing risks from climate and other hazards–with disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities of color suffering disproportionate impacts. Natural threats include sea level rise, flooding, wildfire (and associated unhealthy air quality), extreme heat, drought, and earthquakes. Human-influenced challenges include racial and environmental injustice, income inequality, urban sprawl, inadequate infrastructure, and pandemics. Resilience is known as the capacity to recover quickly and fully from acute disasters and thrive amidst slower-growing threats. However, because global climate change is effectively permanent, urban resilience must be broadened to include strategies for adapting to unavoidable/sustained impacts and coordinating urgent efforts to eliminate the emissions that drive global heating. This course will include discussions of various approaches to resilience and engage multidisciplinary experts who bring resilience into their research or professional work at multiple scales (region, city, district, and building). Major infrastructure system investments and equitable community co-benefits are also key topics as they impact the physical and financial requirements for site design and development. We will examine new approaches to urban design, equity, insurance, and policy and formulate an approach to resilience that will improve the quality of a real estate investment, its equity, and environmental impact, while remaining profitable. At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to assess solutions to respond to this question: How can real estate investments in existing urban districts simultaneously support adaptation, minimize greenhouse gas emissions, protect vulnerable communities, and create value?
Two Capstone Project options exist for MRED+D students: Independent and Directed.
Students pursuing the Independent Capstone project will conduct an original investigation in order to acquire and produce “new knowledge” within a framework set either by a professional client in practice, or critically on your own. The primary goal of this research is to deepen your personal understanding of a particular topic or issue in real estate development and design. Your investigation will consist primarily of secondary research–information collected from others, including scholarly or technical articles, news articles, and other published or internal work product materials. A key source of research will also be in-person interviews with your professional client, project team members, consultants or relevant professional contacts. You will analyze and summarize this information in order to apply it to your particular research topic in the form of a reviewed 10-minute public presentation. A key element of working effectively in this professional field is the ability to make succinct, informative and compelling oral presentations, so the final presentation allows students to build public speaking skills and confidence before joining the post-graduate workforce.
The directed capstone course provides students with guided experiential learning ot synthesize and apply the entire body of knowledge acquired through MRED+D coursework to date. Students will shape learning applications by selecting from a list of curated development sites and preparing a development project proposal. The list of project sites covers a breadth of use types and scales, offering various levels of complexity. Students may choose the challenge that best offers an opportunity for growth and demonstrates readiness for undertaking work in a specific industry segment or role. The final deliverable will be a development proposal and a brief oral presentation with slide deck to the cohort and a jury of development practitioners.
Preparation for the Independent Capstone option–developing your Independent Capstone project and beginning the research phase, and practicing iterative problem-solving with input from peers and guest practitioners to synthesize knowledge gained through MRED+D coursework.