COURSE NUMBER: MBA 284.1

This course is cross-listed with the Evening and Weekend MBA Program

COURSE TITLE: Real Estate Investment

UNITS OF CREDIT: 3 Units

INSTRUCTOR: Robert H. Edelstein

E-MAIL ADDRESS: edelstei@haas.berkeley.edu

CLASS WEB PAGE LOCATION (HTTP URL): to be determined

MEETING DAY(S)/TIME: Wednesdays, 6:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

PREREQUISITE(S): 280 and 282 or 283

CLASS FORMAT: Each class will focus on a different case and is completely class discussion, including role playing, negotiation, etc.

REQUIRED READINGS: Readings for the course will be a series of 15 cases. The readings for each case will be provided at least two weeks before the scheduled class discussion. The case materials will be available on the course web site when it is possible to do so.

BASIS FOR FINAL GRADE: Students will be expected to develop a solution strategy for each case and to be prepared to respond to questions, role-play, and/or lead the case discussion. Seven written case analyses are also required. (The best six grades are used to determine the cases component of your final grade.) Students may select the cases they wish to use for their write-ups according to their interests. Grades will be based on class participation (50%) and the case write-ups (50%).

ABSTRACT OF COURSE'S CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES:

This course is designed to be a capstone course for students who have completed prerequisite real estate courses. The course is based on cases and will focus on developing strategic decision-making skills in real estate management. Class time will be used to present and critique management strategies that students develop for each case. The cases used in this course focus on recent real estate management problems in real estate development and acquisition, real estate capital markets, corporate real estate, real estate repositioning and marketing, the entitlement process and project management. In some cases, the senior decision makers involved in the actual project will lead the case discussion.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH:

Robert Edelstein joined the University of California at Berkeley in 1985 and is active in the fields of real estate economics, finance, and property taxation; energy and environmental economics; public finance; and urban financial problems. He is a prodigious researcher and writer with work that addresses the major issues facing the real estate industry today. He has been published widely in prestigious economics and business journals on such topics as residential financial analysis and residential real estate markets, including international real estate and financial markets. He has testified before the United States Congress on many issues including the viability of variable rate mortgages for savings and loan associations, the fiscal soundness of the V.A. Revolving Loan program, the determinants of the loan size limits for the FHA Single-Family Loan Program, the restructuring of the FHA Multi-Family Loan Program, the imposition of capital requirements on FNMA and FHLMC, and the impact of the Rodash decision upon the housing finance system. He brings a set of refreshing viewpoints, as well as an indomitable energy to the real estate and financial field, and is widely sought after for speaking engagements and as a consultant by both government agencies and private sector clients. He has been President of the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association. He has served on the Board of Directors of the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association and on the editorial boards of the Journal of Housing, Journal of Property Research, Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, and Real Estate Economics. He also has been a member of several prestigious Corporate Boards. Dr. Edelstein received an A.B., A.M., and Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.