Overview
Who is it for?
The postgraduate degree in Real Estate Investment is your gateway to a successful career in property and real estate, or in financial services. Choose this course if you’re looking for roles and a career in real estate investment strategy, capital markets and fund management, real estate finance and investment research but also in all areas of real estate including professional services.
You’re a graduate with the equivalent of a UK upper second degree with a good background in quantitative techniques. You may be looking to boost your real estate career, or just starting out – either way, you already have an interest in real estate and you’re ready to develop strong analytical and practical skills that are in high demand across the real estate profession.
Objectives
On the Bayes MSc in Real Estate Investment, you’ll learn at a faster pace than on the master’s in Real Estate, so you’ll need a good understanding of quantitative methods, or have work experience within the industry.
You’ll start with the core skills of valuation, financial modelling, development appraisal, market analysis and statistical applications to the real estate market and investment. You’ll then take on advanced methods in financial modelling, forecasting, debt finance and investments, portfolio analysis, and examine in more detail the financial markets created by Real Estate Investment Trusts and Mortgage Backed Securities.
You’ll learn in a robust framework of quantitative methods and financial and economic theory and acquire up-to-date industry techniques and practical tools hands-on in computer labs.
The MSc Real Estate Investment course requires an aptitude in quantitative methods. The MSc Real Estate equips you for roles across all types of real estate business and is open to those with previous degrees or work experience in any discipline.
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Structure
- Learn from expert teaching staff, active researchers with senior-level industry experience, and from industry professionals from London, a global real estate and finance hub.
- Choose a course that’s valued by major employers in real estate and finance and accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), enabling graduates to enter the RICS Assessment of Professional Competence (APC).
- Gain the theoretical understanding and practical skills that industry employers are seeking.
- Match your course to your ambitions, including international electives and a business research project that you design.
- Build your professional network in a global real estate hub, close to London’s financial core, and through our students’ Real Estate Club, our mentoring scheme and industry events.
Overall the MSc Real Estate Investment could be labelled as a degree in finance which is focussed on real estate. Since the topics and methods you study are of interest to all real estate businesses, including the mainstream employers like chartered surveyors, the MSc Real Estate Investment may give you a wider choice of the role you play but it does not pre-determine what sort of firm you work for.
Term 1 gives you a grounding in the core skills of the real estate professional. You cover basic appraisal methods applied to valuation, development and financing of investments, financial modelling plus an applied statistics module that incorporates econometric modelling with real estate data. Those techniques are put in a wider context through a module on economics and market analysis and an investment markets module which ranges across all asset classes and financial instruments.
Term 2 is more about applications of those core skills and principles. You look in more detail at the financial instruments and techniques to analyse the securitised equity and debt investment markets, private debt market, portfolio risk and property futures. In Investment Vehicles you cover the different forms of indirect real estate – REITs and property funds: core, opportunistic, value add. In Debt Finance and Investment you take in mortgage lending, mezzanine finance, mortgage-backed securities.
Portfolio and Asset Allocation deals with the role of real estate in investment portfolios and the mix of assets within real estate portfolios. Applied Financial Analysis furthers your analytical skills and equips you with more tools to address real world and topical issues in the investment segments of the market. Examples include assessing the impact of building green features on values and forecasting.
Induction weeks
All of our MSc courses start with two compulsory induction weeks which include relevant refresher courses, an introduction to the careers services and the annual careers fair.
Term 1
Investment Markets
Investors measure the performance of real estate and decide how much to invest in it against other asset classes. This module sets that context, covering market structures, pricing and performance measurement across equities, bonds, derivative and currency markets.
Applied Statistics
Across all modules in this course you will need good skills in data analysis and an understanding of the statistical methods used in performance analysis, portfolio modelling and risk analysis. This module covers those general techniques leading to assess relationships empirically and build models to forecast take up, rents and development.
Appraisal and Financial Modelling
We begin with the foundations of financial principles and mathematics which apply across all asset classes. You then learn how those techniques are used in cash flow modelling, valuation and investment decisions for real estate investments and developments, both in the UK and around the world. Since real estate is often financed with debt, you will apply financial modelling to understand how senior, junior, equity and mezzanine debt affect returns and risks.
Economics and Market Analysis
A course in economics is standard for all Business School students. Here you will learn not only those general economic principles – business cycles, inflation, interest rates, government and central bank policies - but also how they apply to real estate: drivers of demand for real estate and supply of space, rent determination and property yield movements. The module also covers the urban hierarchy, location, agglomerations and government intervention in the real estate market.
Term 2
Portfolios and Asset Allocation
Two of the biggest questions in real estate are show investors decide how much to invest, and then how they spread their portfolios across markets to deliver target returns and risks. You will learn in depth the performance measurement and portfolio construction techniques which drive those decisions, and how to apply them to portfolios spread across countries, sectors and regions. This module builds on the understanding of drivers of real estate returns from different types of investment vehicle covered in other Term 2 modules.
Investment Vehicles
Investors buy into real estate in a variety of forms – by buying buildings directly, through fund managers’ vehicles like Property Unit Trusts or Private Equity Funds, or buy buying shares in listed companies like Real Estate Investment Trusts. In this module you will cover the structures of these different vehicles, how they are modelled and priced, with the costs, returns, risks and liquidity they offer to investors.
Applied Financial Analysis
The objective of the module is to develop an understanding of theoretical and practical understanding of key techniques in real estate analysis, centred on topics drawn from published research and embedded in other modules in the programme. It will equip students with the skills needed to produce their own analytical models, conduct and assess forecasts, evaluate the information content of investment ratios and blockchain in real estate investment and overall to critically analyse industry and academic research publications.
Debt Finance and Investments
Debt finance in real estate is a critical factor for investors and for lenders – indeed as the Global Financial Crisis showed, for the financial system as a whole. This module looks at real estate debt from all those angles, exploring with you the impacts of debt on investor returns, the types of debt offered by lenders and the underwriting criteria they use and the features of securitised debt - CMBS and convertible bonds. Extensive use of Excel is made to illustrate the impact of leverage on performance, loan payments, calculate lender risks and default adjusted lender IRRs and to structure a CMBS deal.
Term 3
Business Research Project
The last block of your course, the Business Research Project (BRP), is the one you design and build for yourself. It takes the form of a report of around 8,000 words submitted in August. We see the BRP as your opportunity to have a showpiece which shows potential employers what you know, what you can do, your ability to produce good-quality individual work.
BRP's come in the full range of forms. To give a few examples:
- Some are mostly about technical methods (a forecasting model for London offices, REITs and asset allocation in the USA)
- Others review trends and prospect in specific real estate markets (like housing in Hong Kong, investment in Africa)
- Or look at topical questions (like the impact of e-tailing on real estate, sustainability and building values)
- Or look in-depth at specific development projects (Kings Cross in London, a resort in Montenegro).
Term 3 Electives
In term three, you also pick a set of three elective topics from around six modules specific to real estate plus a range run by other Bayes Masters programmes – some of them taught on trips to locations outside the UK. So you can focus on:
- Added core real estate topics like building management, sustainability, residential markets.
- Or on the investment aspects of the industry like REITs, real estate funds and portfolio construction.
- Or pick up on more general topics such as private equity and project management taught by experts from other Bayes programmes.
Electives offered in 2022
- Behavioural Finance
- Ethics, Society and the Finance Sector
- Hedge Funds
- Mergers & Acquisitions
- Private Equity Investment
- Visual Basics in Finance
- Family Business
- Project Leadership
- Advanced Modelling and Risk Analysis
- Building Project Management and Procurement.
International electives
- International Real Estate Markets (taught in Dubai, UAE)
- Project Finance and Infrastructure Investment (taught in Madrid, Spain)
Please note that electives are subject to change and availability.
See the MSc in Real Estate Investment programme specification
Assessment methods
All core modules in Term 1 and Term 2 are assessed by sight-unseen examinations (in January and April) plus courseworks set and delivered in Term time. The majority of elective modules is assessed by coursework. A number of modules is assessed using tests.
Your courseworks will take a range of forms - essays, modelling projects, presentations, class tests. Some are done individually, others in self-selected or allocated groups of up to four members. The mix of assignments is designed to develop the general and soft skills employers expect – time management, team working, report production and presentations. In Term 2 groups are required to give a presentation to an industry audience.
Overall your final Masters mark will be assessed on 50% exams and 50% coursework.
| Course Element | % Weight in Final Marks |
|---|---|
| Term 1 + Term 2 total eight core modules | 66.67% |
| Examinations | 50.00% |
| Coursework | 16.67% |
| Term 3 Elective Modules - coursework | 16.67% |
| Individual Business Research Project | 16.67% |
Term dates
Term dates 2023/24
- Induction: 11th September 2023 - 22nd September 2023
- Term one: 25th September 2023 - 8th December 2023
- Term one exams: 8th January 2024 - 19th January 2024
- Term two: 22nd January 2024 - 5th April 2024
- Term two exams: 22nd April 2024 - 3rd May 2024
- Term three - international electives: 6th May 2024 - 17th May 2024
- Term three: 20th May 2024 - 5th July 2024
- Term three exams: 8th July 2024 - 19th July 2024
- Resits: 12th August 2024 - 23rd August 2024
- Additional resit week - tests only: 26th August 2024 - 30th August 2024.
Timetables
Course timetables are normally available from July and can be accessed from our timetabling pages. These pages also provide timetables for the current academic year, though this information should be viewed as indicative and details may vary from year to year.
View academic timetables (add timetable and search for your programme)
Please note that all academic timetables are subject to change.
Teaching staff
Your Course Director will be Professor Sotiris Tsolacos, who is an academic with years of practical experience. Previously he was with Henley Business School and held posts at JLL and Property Portfolio Research/Costar from 1999 to 2013. He is working closely with property service providers, investment managers and private equity firms on a range of topical real estate themes. He is co-author of the standard textbooks Applied Quantitative Analysis for Real Estate and Real Estate Modelling and Forecasting. He is the recipient of the European Real Estate Society’s Achievement Award.
Professor Sotiris Tsolacos teaches on the Applied Statistics module, Applied Financial Analysis module, Economics and Market Analysis module and Debt Finance and Investment module.
Professor David Blake
Head of The Pensions Institute and an investment expert who has written numerous journal articles and industry reports, including work on Real Estate in Defined Contribution Pension Schemes commissioned by the real estate industry. David has also authored a standard text on investment markets.
Professor David Blake teaches on the Investment Markets module.
Christopher Bourn
At the Bayes Business School since 2017, Chris has more than 25 years' real estate experience, which includes private equity, investment banks and property company investor developers, with coverage in the UK and Pan European markets. Chris also manages his own real estate consulting business and combines this with running excel based real estate CPD accredited training courses to property professionals,investment banks and sovereign wealth funds. Chris is Argus Software Certified for Enterprise and Developer, holds an MSc Real Estate Investment (distinction) from the Buisness School and is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants.
Chris contributes to the delivery of:
- Appraisal and Financial Modelling
- ARGUS software training
- Debt Finance and Investments
Stephen has over twenty-five years teaching experience and has been with Bayes Business School since 2005. He is an internationally recognised academic, who sits on the boards of the European Real Estate Society and the International Real Estate Society. He has published over 100 papers which break new ground in the field, mostly looking at investment risks and returns, asset allocation and portfolio construction.
Stephen teaches on the following modules:
- Appraisal and Financial Modellng
- Portfolios and Asset Allocation
Alex Moss
A Bayes lecturer who also runs his own consultancy advising major investors in listed real estate companies. Alex has worked for Maquarie and BZW, and is currently chair of the European Public Real Estate Association. He has authored a long string of industry publications, and articles in academic journals on the role of listed real estate in investment strategies.
Alex teaches on the Indirect Vehicles and Portfolio module.
In addition to the above core group, the teaching team comprises module leaders of electives and visiting and guest lecturers.
Mark is Senior Lecturer in Real Estate Finance. At the Business School since 2007, Mark has over 16 years teaching experience. He is a highly skilled quantitative analyst who has published over 20 papers and a number of government commissioned reports on his research speciality in residential markets.
Dr Mark Andrew teaches on:
- Economics and Market Analysis
Application
How to apply
We only accept online applications.
Apply for MSc Real Estate Investment
Documents required for decision-making
- Transcript/interim transcript
- Grading system used by your university
- Current module list if still studying
- CV
- Personal statement - this should be 500-600 words in length and answer the following:
- Why have you selected this course? What are your motivating factors?
- What are your areas of interest within the course?
- What contributions do you feel you can make to the course?
- How do you see the course affecting your career plans?
Documents which may follow at a later date
- English language test result if applicable
- GMAT result if applicable
- Confirmation of professional qualification examinations/exemptions/passes, if applicable
- Two references
- For a successful application to receive an unconditional status, all award documents must be verified, and should be provided to the relevant Admissions Officer via one of the methods stated in your offer.
We cannot comment on individual eligibility before you apply and we can only process your application once it is fully complete, with all requested information received.
Individual Appointments
If you would like to arrange an individual appointment to discuss the application process and be given a tour of the facilities, please complete this form.
Please note - these are subject to availability.
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Terms and conditions
Students applying to study at Bayes Business School are subject to City, University of London's terms and conditions.
Entry requirements
- A UK upper second class degree or above, or the equivalent from an overseas institution.
- Applicants for MSc Real Estate Investment will be required to have a broader background in quantitative techniques and finance
- Work experience is not a requirement for this course
GMAT
- GMAT is not required for application, but may be requested as a condition of offer at the discretion of the Admissions Panel.
English language requirements
If you have been studying in the UK for the last three years it is unlikely that you will have to take an English language test.
If you have studied in the UK at degree level for less than three years (e.g. 3+1, 2+1, 2+2, etc.) you will be required to provide the results of an approved English language test and possibly resit the test to meet our academic entry requirements.
Full list of approved English language tests/qualifications and minimum requirements.
Fees
Fees in each subsequent year of study (where applicable) will be subject to an annual increase of 2%. We will confirm any change to the annual tuition fee to you in writing prior to you commencing each subsequent year of study (where applicable).
Deposit: £2,000 (usually paid within 1 month of receiving offer and non-refundable unless conditions of offer are not met)
First installment: Half fees less deposit (payable during on-line registration which should be completed at least 5 days before the in-person ID–checks)
Second installment: Half fees (paid in January following start of course)
Career pathways
With our master’s in Real Estate Investment you can choose from a wide spread of firms and roles. You will be well suited to analyst, strategy or research positions in major fund management houses and investment banks, or smaller private-equity type real estate funds, rating agencies and specialist research firms. Or you could go on to professional qualifications, joining the graduate entry schemes of chartered surveyors in the UK or abroad or stepping outside real estate, such as the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute.
The real estate specialists at Bayes Careers Service use their industry contacts to arrange recruitment visits from the largest real estate employers throughout your course, and send regular job alerts. You’ll also get support and advice from them, and through our Bayes graduate mentoring scheme.
Class profile
Recent graduates from the MSc in Real Estate Investment degree have seured positions with companies including:
- Real Estate Analyst - Principal Finance - Macquarie Group
- Analyst - Residential Investment and Development - Savills
- Analyst - Investment management - Hines
- Analyst - Tristan Capital Partners
- Investment Analyst - Real Estate Private Equity - GWM Capital.
Connecting with employers
- From week one, we host recruitment visits from all the largest real estate employers – like CBRE, JLL, Cushman Wakefield, Savills – plus other firms in real estate fund management, development, finance.
- Our real estate specialists in the Bayes Careers Service hold contacts with businesses across the industry, and will notify you of job opportunities as they come in through the year.
- You will have un-matched opportunities to network with professionals and employers across London’s vibrant real estate industry at seminars and an annual conference run by our students’ Real Estate Club, and through industry events outside Bayes.
Previous graduates have gone on to work in property and real estate across the UK, Asia and the EU.
(Data provided from alumni who completed the annual destination data survey for 2020/21 and 2019/20).
Course information and statistics (2022/23 cohort)
Accreditation
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredits the course, enabling graduates to enter the RICS Assessment of Professional Competence (APC).
The Investment Property Forum in the UK recognises the programme as a gateway to the real estate investment sector and as a clear entry route for membership of the Forum for all candidates aged over 30 with five years appropriate experience.