Course is closed
Lead Instructor(s)
Location
On Campus
Course Length
3 Days
Course Fee
$4,800
CEUs
1.9 CEUs
Sign-up for Course UpdatesWatch Course Webinar
Course is closed
Sign-up for Course Updates

Assess the critical elements of the real estate development process from start to finish through the lens of an investor. In this accelerated three-day course, you’ll join a wide range of global professionals from the real estate, banking, finance/investment, and insurance industries to master frameworks for assessing, managing, and pricing risk in real estate development—and acquire proven strategies for determining whether to move forward with a project.

This course may be taken individually or as part of the Professional Certificate Program in Real Estate Finance & Development. 

Course Overview

Designed to analyze the real estate development process primarily from the perspective of the equity participant, the Commercial Real Estate Development course concentrates on the identification and evaluation of critical assumptions related to permitting strategies, financial feasibility, construction contract choice, project delivery methods, and negotiating key terms of equity financing for economically viable commercial real estate developments. Inherent risk factors and ways to manage risk are also explored.

All phases of the development process are examined: idea conception, marketability, financial feasibility, contract negotiations, and debt and equity financing. During this intensive three-day course, prominent practitioners and real estate attorneys will join the lectures and review, in detail, two common contracts utilized in the development process—a Joint Venture (LLC) Agreement and a Construction Loan Agreement.

Certificate of Completion from MIT Professional Education

Commerical Real Estate cert image
Learning Outcomes
  • Identify the components of the real estate development process from the perspective of the investor
  • Evaluate the critical elements of a real estate development in deciding to go forward or not
  • Identify risk factors and ways to manage and price risk
  • Analyze the financial feasibility of a real estate project
  • Through team exercises, attendees will leave with a solid understanding of – and be more confident in negotiating, the terms of a Joint Venture (LLC) Agreement and a Construction Loan Agreement

Program Outline

This course meets 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Monday-Wednesday. Please note all times are US Eastern Daylight Time. Schedule is subject to change.

Day One:

9:00 am - 10:30 am: Dirigo International case 
10:30 am - 10:45 am: Coffee Break
10:45 am - noon: Dirigo International case (continued)
Noon - 1:00 pm: Lunch Break
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm: Discussion of permitting goals and processes from the perspective of the municipality and permit granting authorities.
2:30 pm - 2:45 pm: Break
2:45 pm - 4:30 pm: Discussion of permitting strategies (and how to execute those strategies) from the developer’s perspective

Day Two:

8:30 am - 10:30 am: Discussion of challenges and strategies associated with mixed-use development
10:30 am - 10:45 am: Break
10:45 am - noon: Discussion of the financial structure of joint ventures: preferred returns, promoted interests, development fees, capital calls, and completion guarantees. Introduction of a capital markets-based framework for determining “fair” profit splits.
Noon - 1:00 pm: Lunch Break
1:00 pm - 2:45 pm: Breakout session to discuss required changes to the form Joint Venture Agreement
2:45 pm - 3:00 pm: Break (in route to site visit)
3:00 pm - 5:00 pm: 30-minute presentation and a site visit to local commercial property under construction

Day Three:

8:30 am - 10:00 am: Discussion of how to choose an appropriate construction contracting method
10:00 am - 10:15 am: Break
10:15 am - noon: Discussion of other project delivery issues and strategies
Noon - 1:00 pm: Lunch Break
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm: Managing a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT): Key Insights
2:30 pm - 2:45 pm: Break
2:45 pm - 4:30 pm: Case study - student teams will discuss and prepare materials culminating in a case presentation.

Who Should Attend

This course is applicable to a wide range of professionals across the real estate, banking, finance/investment, and insurance industries. Specifically, the course may be of interest to fund managers, investment portfolio managers, financial advisors, investment bankers, fixed-income analysts, financial risk managers, global financial market specialists, and professionals working in macroeconomic policy. More generally, this class can be valuable to anyone dealing with global financial markets and real estate investments.

Requirements

Laptops or tablets are required as course materials will be distributed electronically.

Testimonials

“Very interesting- great discussions- I highly recommend taking this course!”
Michael Heidrich, Analyst, AEW Capital Management
“The discussions and moderated negotiations will be extremely valuable and applicable to my day to day responsibilities and future career development.”
Participant, AEW Capital Management
“This was a very enjoyable and informational course and hope to attend the finance courses in the future.”
Will Yandell, Heritage Land Development
“This course was excellent and Tod is an incredible talent with commanding knowledge of Real Estate Development. You are not bored for one minute in three action packed days. The guest speakers are some of the best minds in the industry.”
Jim Fitzgerald
“Everything I wanted from the course and more. A must do to understand contracts and real use scenarios.”
Oliver Rifkind
“This was another amazing course from Tod. The hands on negotiations were a wonderful teaching tool.”
Darren Low
“I was surprised to have received so much information in such a little time. It never seemed overwhelming and actually, was rather fun. Tod and the visiting attorneys assisting him were very friendly, knowledgeable, and professional. This real world experience added an important level of depth to the classroom experience.”
Mark Wiesendanger
BROCHURE
Download the Course Brochure
Commercial Real Estate Development - Brochure Image
Content

The type of content you will learn in this course, whether it's a foundational understanding of the subject, the hottest trends and developments in the field, or suggested practical applications for industry.

Fundamentals: Core concepts, understandings, and tools - 40%|Latest Developments: Recent advances and future trends - 10%|Industry Applications: Linking theory and real-world - 50%
40|10|50
Delivery Methods

How the course is taught, from traditional classroom lectures and riveting discussions to group projects to engaging and interactive simulations and exercises with your peers.

Lecture: Delivery of material in a lecture format - 40%|Discussion or Groupwork: Participatory learning - 60%
40|60
Levels

What level of expertise and familiarity the material in this course assumes you have. The greater the amount of introductory material taught in the course, the less you will need to be familiar with when you attend.

Introductory: Appropriate for a general audience - 65%|Specialized: Assumes experience in practice area or field - 35%
65|35