The Luskin School of Public Policy has been approved to launch a new real estate development master’s program in fall 2025.
The 11-month program, first proposed three years ago, would provide students with graduate-level specialized training in real estate and urban development, said Anastasia Lukaitou Sideris, interim dean of the Luskin School. Students would focus on real estate fundamentals as well as more contemporary themes such as housing affordability, climate change architecture and architecture for communities of color.
The program is aimed at students with experience in real estate development and graduate students looking for professional opportunities in real estate development, said Vinit Mukhija, a professor in the School of Urban Planning, where the new degree program will be located. Other universities, including UC Berkeley and the University of Southern California, have similar programs, Mukhija said.
Mukhija said the programme aims to contextualise real estate development education by focusing on relevant urban policies, institutions and economic regulations.
“We want to place this real estate development education in the context of a broader urban development perspective,” he said. “We are also motivated to consider how real estate development contributes to environmental sustainability, social equity and inclusive urban opportunity.”
Loukaitu-Sideris said the program will include 44 credit hours of courses ranging from land development law and architectural technology to green building. Students will use Los Angeles as a collaborative “laboratory” to brainstorm ideas and develop solutions on policy, land use planning and construction, she said.
“Students will work on a graduation project that is a realistic opportunity to simulate a real-world development project,” Lukaitou Sideris said. “There will be a number of electives depending on the students' interests. … For students who want to focus on housing affordability, there will be a course on housing affordability.”
Mukhija said the program also wants to address the lack of diversity in the real estate industry by focusing on equity, sustainability and inclusion. Lukait Sideris said the program hopes to achieve that goal through fundraising and access to fellowships, such as diversity fellowships and fellowships for people who are unable to participate in the program.
Loukaito-Sideris said the program is very timely given the real estate challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Southern California, for example, is facing the problem of adaptive reuse, which involves reusing existing structures to serve a different role than their original purpose, Loukaito-Sideris said.
Michael Manville, professor in the School of Urban Planning, added that the program is especially suited to Los Angeles because the city is the epicenter of new real estate trends.
“The city is experiencing strong growth pressures, significant housing price inflation, and urban planning changes that will be required to meet climate and sustainability goals,” he said in an email. “As such, it is an ideal place to study real estate.”
Mukhija said the programme will focus on practical knowledge in development, real estate finance, law and market analysis skills, among other areas. He added that more than two-thirds of the programme's faculty will be industry experts.
Mukhija said he expects the program will be well-received and is looking forward to getting it off the ground.
“We expect there will be a lot of interest, not just from the local Bruins, but from across the state, the nation and even the world.”